news

Whew. I have not posted in 4EVA. My old laptop died about a month ago (RIP), and I've been building an Mp3 empire since. In my quest for the best (derp), I've found some lovely netlabel ambient records since.

Herzog's First Summer and the Running Dream (Resting Bell, 2009), is a blissful, crackly, half-hour work. A cohesive, stylish collection, this album is perfect for an afternoon nap. If you'd prefer an afternoon shit-your-pants, pick up Sylvie Walder and entia non's Bewilderment (Resting Bell, 2009). It's darkened shit (not Swans-dark, mind you), but sufficiently airy to be called 'lovely'.

You may also want to check out Herzog's earlier releases over at Archive.org. And in terms of paid-for ambient, Loscil's Endless Falls has been in heavy rotation in my CD player at night. You can get it at Amazon for just $6.

Reviews of Jessica Bailiff, Swans (!?!?!), and new releases later this week. Maybe. Finally, don't expect to see any new photos in the Flickr sidebar as I'm taking a break from the site for a while. Fuck online popularity (I mean, Christ, look at this ghost town of a site).

Got the new Owen Pallett album in the mail yesterday. He's eschewed the Final Fantasy persona to please some Japanese people or something. Impressions: Gay man is good with violin. Gay man returns with violin and a concept album based on an ultraviolent farmer. Album grows slow on you, but surely, it grows. Gay puns all around. Everyone's happy. Buy it.

Anywho, new releases arriving soon that may interest you (and I, er, need a list for myself):
Massive Attack
Jaga Jazzist (Jan 25)
Sade (Feb 9)
Four Tet
Beach House
Hot Chip
Yeasayer
Xiu Xiu
Liars (March)
Goldfrapp (not 'till March)
Flying Lotus (April)

I’m in one of those creative moods. One of those moods that comes every couple months. Not where I simply feel like taking a photograph or writing a story, but one of those states in which I feel like doing both those things—along with critiquing everything I own, scripting a comic book, making a video, cutting up new noise music. Everything creative that I enjoy doing I feel like doing. Do you know what I mean? I hope you do. And I hope this feeling stays intact.

My new ‘creative thing’ is the capsule review. I don’t think I invented it. I’m sure I didn’t. I’m just not sure if ‘capsule review’ is the proper name for a short, succinct review that abandons the gristle for the heartiest of truth and lulz. Whatever it’s called (if anything), you’ll be seeing it often here on Squid Can from now on. Album reviews, DVD reviews, TV reviews, and—especially—comic book reviews will now be in capsule format unless I really feel like diving into the virtues of some work. I’ve come to realize that with the amount of media I digest—music, television, short fiction, graphic novels—there is no way I can ever feel ‘complete’ towards consuming them without some sort of judgment, some critique. It helps me make sense of it all, it helps me to make connections, and it helps my writing skills. I suppose that, after all the years of half-assing essays in religion class, I’ve finally realized the importance of reflection. Reflection can make a mindless consumer a responsible one. Writing is reflection. Art’s reflection. A whole lot of thinking shit is reflection shit. This shit right here? Reflection. Mind blown.

I’ve set up a few new banners (80s gals, natch), and I’m looking to make some other improvements towards the site. I’ve also come to realize that this site looks like Sodom and Gomorrah in Internet Explorer. So, IF YOU’RE USING IE RIGHT NOW—use Firefox instead. I like this theme and I’d rather not change it. To see the old theme, you could always sign up for an account and select the old theme. But that’s a pain in the ass. Finally, I’m working on a capsule review page entirely for the Uncanny X-Men. I have so much time on my hands. Why not use it for something mildly useless instead of completely useless?

Well, I’m off to bed. And when I wake up, it’ll start again—consumption, reflection, creation, repetition. Beautiful stuff, no?

Or gentry, whatever, since this blog is supposed to be feminist or something.

Anywho, we have something important to discuss, folks. Squid Can is nearing its TWO-YEAR ANNIVERSARY. Tomorrow will be the two-year mark since the first review posted here (it was of Homogenic, naturally). What does this mean? Well, not much, really. As you may have noticed (or not), Squid Can has a new theme. Yes, after two years of the same ole' style, I've moved onto a new look---one with a beautifully rotating header (refresh the page for moar k3wl images, bro). Well, a few things got shuffled in the transition from point A to point B, but don't worry (not that you were). Things will be corrected soon.

Aside from the newly fandangled graphical tomfoolery, I've decided to revisit the best posts of Squid Can in a five-part retrospective entitled: The Old Man and the Squid: Why I Do Keep Writing this Shit.

You will laugh. You will cry. You will rage. You will read an entirely new review of Homogenic tomorrow. And you will enjoy.

Or not, I really can't say. Eh eh. Nothing else. Hint.

God, I'm so sick of not posting here. It's fucking Christmas. This is prime blogging season (derp). Here are some (sorta) rare remixes from that wacky alternative pop singer Bahzhork (that's how you pronounce her name, right?).

Oh, and the review challenge is extended to January 31st now. Um. Yeah.

And, hey, new menu buttons! And Christmasy icons. Swell. Maybe you can update the site once in a while, Alex. You know, when you're not being a douche.

B.J. York Remixes on Mediafire

P.S. Got accepted to Emerson. Celebrate.

Maybe I'll start posting new, interesting content when I get un-sick and I makeup my work before break. Ah, you don't care. I'm just some guy who gives you sample songs in lossless. New reviews tomorrow (fingers crossed; not trying to troll your hopes).

Download "The Smallest Weird Number" by Boards Of Canada (Mediafire, ALAC)

Wow, great pick to kick off the Christmas season, Alex. A song called "Love Less"? Class. Real classy. Why not upload some MBV's seminal album of the same name, huh? That's 'Christmasy.' And that picture, what's that? Some avant-garde feminist thing? Screw that, you don't even have pictures of snowmen or anything, do you?

Sometimes it's a hassle to post things here. I look at people's Tumblrs and I'm like, "Wow, that's it?" or "What, you made 800 posts this month alone?" I need to format this shit like its 1998. Hell, I'm so far in the blogging past I might as well drag out my old CueCat.
Download "Love Less" by New Order (Megaupload, V0 Mp3)

P.S. In this post: foreshadowing.

Obligatory Thanksgiving post. Listen to some British music. Off to Best Buy in four-and-a-half-hours with two friends. WHAT IS GOING ON HERE. Reviews will be back soon.

Download "Vanishing Point" by New Order (Wikisend, V0 Mp3) (Link expired)

Something nice for Veterans Day.
Download "Dawn Chorus" by Boards Of Canada (Link expired)

P.S. Cheers for a year or so of Squid Can not-sucking--the first 'good' post in months also happened to be the first mixtape.

Kate Bush is tired of my shit

Remember when I used to post things on this blog? Things that weren’t filler, and were well-thought out pieces on modern culture? No? Well, I have some truly wonderful news for those of y’all that do remember—it’s something that will hopefully have you returning to the calamari dish known as Squid Can throughout the month (Ooooh).

Given the approaching state of Thanksgiving and the holiday season, I’ve decided to reward all of my one-and-a-half loyal readers with something extravagant, ludicrous, and near-impossible for a one-man blog—125 album reviews between now and Christmas Eve.

Yes, one-hundered-and-twenty-five reviews—starting now—and ending on the eve of Santa Claus. You read that correctly. These won’t be super-analyses expounding on meta-text or anything similarly in-depth—just three-hundred words or so on whether an album sucks or not. Now, why not bookmark this page (or better, subscribe to the RSS thing) and skedaddle for now. I’ve got some work to do.

CLICK HERE to see the most recent album reviews
CLICK HERE to subscribe to the album review RSS feed (High-tech!)

Demonz.

Postmodernity has practically validated anything and everything as art. Damien Hirst, a bed littered with snot-filled Kleenex, scrolls extracted from vaginas (live and in color!), that shit you took yesterday afternoon—all wonderful, glorious pieces of art.

So, of course, when the discussion comes to comic books, it’s easy to make a case based on buzzwords. “Cheerio, pip pip, the hegemonies associated with hero worship are subjugated to the level of homoerotic tensions that expose the anomies resulting from moralities imposed onto an epistemological structure that no longer requires such ostentations.”

Okay. Whatever. Watchmen is a deconstruction of the Red Scare, The Dark Knight Returns is ‘God is dead’, and Grant Morrison’s New X-Men is a ritualistic recasting of the mutant die with sexual overtones. But, still, whatever. Yes, there are comic books whose intent is ‘art.’ Yet as observed by others, some comics simply do not want to be viewed as art. As such, no one looks at The Dark Phoenix Saga and says, “Wow, just like ‘Lady Lazarus’”—unless, of course, they are a total asshole.

But as I have done countless times before, I will venture to be one of those assholes who takes things too seriously. But unlike that other article I wrote about that thing which I won’t mention because I’m sure people are still laughing at it, this series will be peppered with brevity, cuz dats how I play da game.

Now, what will I be ever-so-closely examining in this series? The 1989 Marvel crossover Inferno. It’s basically Southern Gothic with demons and the X-Men. AND HOW CAN YOU PASS THAT UP?

As I mentioned in a post that’s probably a month-old by now, I’ve been wanting to try some different things here on Squid Can aside from the usual “lol music reference” banter. Thus, I’ll be reviewing Inferno piece by piece in the following week. My sick stay in bed the other day inspired me to dig up a few stacks of comics, and after months of digesting pretentious fiction a little levity is welcomed.

So—is Inferno as artsy as I remember it, or is it pure nostalgia on my part? What does it matter though? I’ve got a week off, a roll of toilet paper for my stuffy nose, plenty of shitty noise rock to listen to, and a stack of comic books to digest. What could be better?

I'll be back soon; I promise!
Sort of bogged with school work and being cool (ha, right) at the moment.
Check out my Flickr, in the meanwhile; that shit is blazin'.
Mp3: "Tangent" by Beth Orton

Mom is lining up peanuts for the squirrels on the front porch, her grand-nephew smiling on as she does so. I look up at her while following my cousin Chris to the side door.
“What’s that deranged look for, Alex?” asks Mom jokingly.
“Well, I wasn’t going to say anything,” says Chris, and I laugh.

See that little vignette? I’m not just a blogger. I’m a writer.

Done laughing? Good, because I have some news. I’ll be adding some half-assed recurring posts to the site. As you can see, I haven’t been keeping up that well with the posting schedule, so I’m adding the following quick-n-easy ‘categories’ so that I can post at least one a day, even if it just a little blurb and a picture.

Don’t Quote Me on That: A post with a quote and a picture. That’s it.
Portfolio: A collection of five or so images, taken by myself, culled from around the web, or scanned from books, magazines, or other printed sources.
Adlets: An ad from a magazine or comic book that I’ve found and scanned, then critiqued in classic Squid fashion.
Vignette: Little stories like the one above, accompanied by a picture and maybe some music.
Better Together: Two works of art—whether a book, a poem, a song, or whatever—that were meant to be together.

Well, there’s my news post for the day. But, really, HOW LAME IS THIS SITE?

Mp3: “F.M. Dial” by Mathhead
Next album review: Curtain Call and Shopping for Images by Midaircondo; The Dreaming by Kate Bush

Watch this: French and Saunders meet Star Wars (YT)
Read this: “The Mirror” by Louise Glück (Scribd)
Cool beans: How to make snazzy blockquotes (via Intervisual's Flickr)

Ready for da cold.

There’s nothing better than coming home after a long week, checking my Squid Can ‘updates’ email, and finding this:

After nearly two decades writing and recording some of her generation’s most emotionally powerful music, Tori Amos will release her first seasonal album, Midwinter Graces, on November 10 via Universal Republic.”

Woah. Did I read that right? A Tori Amos seasonal album? Complete with goofy cover art and songs that may possibly be more astoundingly bad-slash-good than “Police Me”? Oh, but here’s the best part—there are original songs. Pretend I just whispered that in your ear. You can’t yell shit like that aloud. This is sensitive information. Nobody else can know about new, sure-to-be-classics like “Jeanette, Isabella” and “Pink and Glitter.”

Okay, I kid, but will I buying this? Haha, no. Until I hear samples, this is barred from my Valhalla-sized “Stuff to buy” list. Even if it has been “40 years in the making.”

Also, you may have noticed that, as of late, I’ve been adding little blocks of interesting links to the bottom of each news post. Occasionally I may expand one of those links into a short blurb. This is one of those occasions. Also, I should be watching The Office on [adult swim] right now. But I needs some sleep.

Read this: “Rape Fantasies” by Margaret Atwood
(Read at Scribd ) A grim yet entirely intriguing title, isn’t it? In this (very) short story, Atwood uses her typically hyper-caustic wit and humor to cut swaths across a recurring fantasy for modern females. You’ll laugh, but you’ll also ponder what Atwood is trying to say about the nature of gender and communication.

Mp3: “Fire Ant” by Space Ghost (sort of)
Next album review: The Phoenix Demos by Kate Bush (Tomorrow)

Watch this: Music video for “Lily” by Kate Bush (YT)
Daily bargain: Moderat by Moderat ($5.49 at Lala)
Cool beans: "Matthew’s non theme based fancy dress party" (via 27b/6)
Sign of the endtimes: Guiding Light ends

Rah rah rah, go team.

Okay, the title of this post isn’t accurate or anything. Running isn’t fun. It’s painful and a little bit satisfying but it’s most primal and raw and it makes me even more existential than I usually am. But since I managed to lop about three-and-a-half minutes off my time at a meet yesterday, I decided to include with this post a nice little image of Ra Ra Riot. Nobody smiles like that at the finish line, and I haven’t heard anything from this band beyond a decent cover of Kate Bush’s “Suspended in Gaffa.” You can watch their version at YouTube, and if you’re more into indie rock kids than you are Kate Bush’s middle-aged, neo-Victorian theatricality, then you’ll enjoy it.

So, why am I posting today? Wednesdays are supposed to be holy days of non-posts. Well, I was busy last night. And I felt like posting something here, especially after my classmates (and even my teacher, geesh) were like, “OH MY GOD, YOU NEED TO GET A FACEBOOK. WE’LL HELP YOU GET ONE.”

Huh. So, in the news. It’s okay that a young woman was murdered and that more people are concerned over Taylor Swift. Totally fine. Do I need to put sarcasm tags here? Kanye West is an ass. This is news? Of course, it’s understandable that people gravitate towards celebrities. Unimportant drama is a lot easier to digest than the realization that are very sick people in the world. On the same note, though, people should not be getting all fussed about President Obama’s comment towards Kanye. It was an off-the-record remark—and a totally warranted, correct one at that. The President does not need to be discussing ‘srs bizness’ all of the time, just as we regular folks should not ignore the dark and the real in place of glitzy, ridiculously dressed celebs 24/7.

Well, those are my thoughts for the day. Depressing, pointless, and boring as always, huh? And it’d be nice if you keep Annie Le in mind this week.

Mp3: “Tangent” by Beth Orton
Next album review: The Phoenix Demos by Kate Bush

Read this: “Heat” by H.D.
Watch this: “Hitler Finds out About Kanye West” by icepackz (Nws) (YT)

Daily bargain: Break Up by Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson ($2.99 at Amazon Mp3)
Cool beans: Photobooth.net (an online directory of old-fashioned photobooths)
Sign of the endtimes: Drunk mom fondled on flight

Luanne is upset because The Cleveland Show is taking her time slot.

Well, folks. It’s over. After twelve years on the air, King of the Hill has died on a propane-fueled funeral pyre. Its series finale—an episode in which Bobby joins a ‘meat knowledge’ team—aired last night, and it was odd watching the episode knowing that once the half-hour was up—that was it. I was duly mocked by my colleagues for missing the Kanye drama at the VMAs, but it was worth missing for a fine finale to a consistently decent show.

The Simpsons, over the course of 21 seasons, have dipped in-and-out of quality. KOTH, however, rarely deviated from its path. There were episodes that were purely fantastic—such as the season one story in which Hank, Peggy, and Bobby all become addicted to cigarettes—and others that were simply watchable. Throughout its career, KOTH examined a small subculture, but it was one of critical import. What does its cancellation say about American tastes in television? Were we just tired of the shtick, or are we no longer interested in the modernist day-to-day drama? Whatever the reason, there were thirteen frigging seasons of this show. I don’t think we have to worry about running out of episodes to watch. Regardless, there weren’t any shows quite like King of the Hill. The Goode Family failed, and any future efforts to replicate its social commentary and strikingly human comedy won’t quite succeed as it did.

Goodnight, sweet propane prince.

Mp3: “Oh What A Beautiful Morning” by Peggy Lee

Her only complaint: The bacon wasn't crispy
enough. Damn Oscar Mayer.

Oops! I missed my scheduled posts for Friday night. I ended up falling asleep at seven and I woke up at seven this morning. Hey, it takes a lot of sleep to bring you folks this much fantastic content. Or not.

Yesterday, the world’s oldest person—115-year-old Gertrude Baines—died. I’ve been following the ‘World’s Oldest’ chain since about 2007, and it’s something that I find just fascinating. There are weeks when you feel like the past seven days have been the most eventful of your life, and then you realize that one week is a pretty small unit of living. So, imagine someone who’s lived for over a hundred years—Baines was born in 1894. Her grandparents were slaves. She voted for President Obama, saying he’s “for the colored people.” The only other time she voted was for JFK. It’s majestic to live so long, but at the same time it’s a little frightening. I know I don’t want to much further past 65 or 70, because as far as I see it, why would I want to? But for those people who do live beyond 100, all I can think of is the variety of experiences they’ve had. A minute can transform your entire day, an hour your entire life. Just imagine living 115 years and experiencing thousands upon thousands of moments like that. Maybe I can’t explain it. I just find it stunning that anybody can do that much living.

Well, there’s my musing for the day. It’s raining today, so you can expect a few extra posts, maybe even the Friday Mp3 I missed yesterday. Otherwise, I’ll just be staying inside, wearing a sweater, eating soup, and contemplating whether or not I should order some Sylvia Plath oven mitts.

Mp3: “Kid For Today” by Boards Of Canada
Next album review: The Phoenix Demos by Kate Bush
Daily Bargain: Vivaldi’s Four Seasons performed by Izthak Perlman ($1.99 at Amazon Mp3)
Cool beans: CNN headline t-shirts
Sign of the Endtimes: Stephenie Meyer 'origin' comic book to be released (via Jezebel)

Hey, I calls em as I sees em.

I’m sure other people have noticed this, but isn’t every episode of Rugrats the same episode? Babies go on an adventure, Angelica is jealous and bitchy towards them, she tries to get them caught, she’s foiled and the babies are back in their pen. Nostalgia wise, it’s a fine show, but really—did we need one-hundred plus episodes of whatever the hell Didi Pickles was supposed to be? (For fun: Go to around 2:50 in this episode and note Didi’s incorrect prediction that disco would never return. Fucking Hercules and Love Affair.) While I hate to change my opinion from three lines up, my reviewing of these episodes makes me think they aren’t so bad. It’s basically Home Movies, except with babies and more poop humor. Pick your poison.

Other great moments in the ‘Garage Sale’ episode: Andrew Bird shopping at 0:26, Angelica being a conniving succubus at 2:00, “CHUCKY!” at 3:50, and lessons for da recession at 4:25.

See what happens when I try to post on a schedule? I post crap like this.

So what’s out today in music? Sondre Lerche’s new record is out, but at a steep $10 for the Mp3 album I don’t think I’ll be getting it anytime soon (you did listen to Didi Pickle’s recession speech as mentioned above, didn’t you?). You can also pick up A Fine Frenzy’s new album for $3.99 at Lala (don’t expect too much). Amie Street has some interesting bargains in Yo La Tengo and Nudge.

Well, that’s it. I got my post in for the day. They’ll be better once I get used to the daily schedule.

And, Christ, wasn’t this episode just gorgeous?

Mp3: “Good Luck” by Sondre Lerche (from Heartbeat Radio) (Alt. link)

My Frogs (trying not to make a you-know-what reference)

Ahh, it’s GOOD TO BE BACK!

My self-imposed hiatus from Squid Can for the last few weeks has only left me hungry to return to my usual position of being a man of many talents—student, writer, photographer, critic, douchebag, blogger. I obviously have quite a bit to catch up, so expect this post to a bit lengthy. But this is what you’ve been waiting for, right? The return of Squid Can? Right?

Yeah, I didn’t actually think so. Regardless, you might be interested to learn of a few changes I’ve made to the site. First, there’s a new author photo. And this one is swell. I’ll be changing the author photo one or two times every month, so keep an eye out for new pics of the goofily smiling asshole who brings the Squid to your doorstep daily. Second, you might have noticed that the navigation bar is now on the right side (to make it look more ‘bloggy’) and that a calendar-styled archive has been added. This way you can find all those posts you hated three months ago and hate them over and over again—but now the hate is only a click away! Third, there’s now a weekly playlist on the navigation bar. Five songs, handpicked by me, every Saturday—how should thee count the ways I love thou?

In regards to the general direction of this site, I’m going to try and post more ‘general’ content and more film, art, and book news. I’m sick of making jokes about Animal Collective/Grizzly Bear/trendy hipster band (though all my references to Moog synthesizers will remain intact). Also, it’s the school year, so you can expect even more ‘wacky’ stories! Hey, you all love those, right? Make no mistake, all the music quasi-coverage you’ve come to love from Squid Can will still be here, but please—enough Grizzly Bear jokes. Seriously. Especially considering I haven’t utilized a single ‘Lesley Gore is a dyke’ joke in my arsenal yet.

If you’re wondering what I’ve been listening to lately (and you can always check my Last.fm), I’m on a total Kate Bush kick along with some hardcore. I was really introduced to Ms. Bush about a year ago, so Hounds of Love automatically recalls the fall for me (aside from the fact that it’s pretty autumnal on its own). I’ve also just ordered The Dreaming on account of the fact that I’ve listened to “Get Out of My House” about forty times in the past two days. Alec Empire and Atari Teenage Riot are also high on my list, and I’ve been getting into Sunny Day Real Estate and Hot Water Music again. In the way of lesser-known bands, check out Laika (spacey, dreamy, not-trip-hop pop), Sex Positions (easy-on-the-ears hardcore), Pram (not quite sure how to describe them beyond ‘experimental’), and Anjulie (slightly alternative pop on Starsbucks’ (yeah, I know) label).

Now, moving onto other oddities and stuff you likely don’t care about. My new ‘thing’ is collecting Iwako erasers, now, I guess? I bought the whale and everyone said, “Wow, cool eraser, Alex,” so in my quest for social acceptance (boo hoo, Boo Radley, etc.) I went out and bought the entire fucking panoply of Japanese erasers (see also: useless big words, dipping into fifteen-year old money, and excessive self-deprecation). Most hilarious was dropping by a hospital gift shop to purchase myself a few treats—though, in all honesty, the three mega-cute frogs I snagged were worth my time.

I’m also running cross country now, which is perfect for people with anemia and an interest in collecting Japanese erasers. And I have Netflix again. I found some great bargains at yard sales this weekend (Dorothy Parker biography for under a buck, an old poetry book, and a photo of the Italian Alps).

That’s about it. So, as you can see, my personal life is still as boring and uninteresting as it was two weeks ago. But I’m happy. And a happy Squid means good posts for y’all folks to enjoy. Speaking of which, there’ll be a review up later today—the first one on the new schedule!

Well, I have to go resist my urge to join Twitter. Happy Labor Day, here’s a free Mp3, stay spunky, et cetera et cetera.

Mp3: "Aphrodite Dear" by Sex Positions

A stilted Green Day reference? In my Squid Can? Well, tough shit. It has a purpose, folks. See, summer vacation is coming to an end. This means I have to do stuff. This 'stuff' does not involve sitting at a computer and posting snark-riddled reviews of Garbage records, unfortunately. So, this post will likely be the last until the new schedule kicks in on September 7th.

Take a moment to dry your eyes.

However, the good news is that I'll still be working on the site, I just won't be posting any of what I'm writing. This is to ensure that, when outside work really does get heavy, then I'll still be able to post something on a schedule for y'all to enjoy.

Two things before I go. Apparently, I'm important enough to have an artist send a promo Mp3 to my inbox. I know, right? Well, it happened. Sandra Zettpunkt was generous enough to send me a copy of "The One". It features one of the dudes from Calexico on double bass, and Calexico is always a good thing. "Her palette ranges from indie anthem to pastoral gem and pays knowing reference to the raw sparseness of early Cat Power,
Slint's aural intensity, Nico's dark elegance and the welcome transparency of the Radar Brothers," says the press release. I'm not sure what half of those references mean, but I have listened to "The One" and it sounds mighty fine. Why not try it yourself (and watch the video for "Unwound" while you're at it)?

Mp3: "The One" by Music For Your Heart (album is out Sept. 25)

If you're more in the mood for buying music (guffaw guffaw), then there's good new for you over at Amie Street. The other day, well over a thousand albums were added to the site. Most of them are still under $5. Since the list is so huge--and quite honestly, I don't feel like formatting all the links--I've set a list of my picks at YourPaste. Album title and artist are in the url. Among the offerings: Ulver, Boris, Matt and Kim, Holly Go Lighty & The Brokeoffs, Tora! Tora! Torrance!, Elizabeth Cook, Sunny Day Real Estate, Jem, The Gaslight Anthem, and plenty more bargains. Some of the bands in the list I've never heard of, but the covers sure looked interesting.

So there we have it folks. The last Squid Can post of the summer, it looks like (unless I get around to finishing the Pokémon mixtapes). Hold your tears and applause. I'll be back in two weeks. And, while you're away, read "Is Laughter Contagious?" by Joyce Carol Oates. It's cool beans; trust me.

No, silly nerds! Not that final fantasy. The Tifa-less Final Fantasy—the performing pseudonym of Owen Pallet—will be releasing a new album in early 2010. He’s just signed onto Domino; and this is good news for “gay postmodern harpsichord nerds” everywhere, clearly. You know what I like about Owen Pallet, though? He’s the one cool dude in the baroque pop scene who’s not obnoxiously gay. Like, say, Patrick Wolf. We get it man, you’re a drama queen. Why do people still give shits about other people’s sexuality? Oh, that’s right. He has to upkeep his image of drama queen. He can do that by throwing hissy fits!

By the way, vid is NWS due to coarse language and people being total pricks:

 read more »

Swimming is fun, Björk is devilspawn,
and hey, there's no Grizzly Bear in
this post

Hmm, news? Do I have any? I do, actually. Let’s see. There’s a crop of new albums coming in late August/September, and I might as well tell you now before I forget.

Exciting
-Out today: Luke Vibert (why was I not informed until this morning? Oh, that’s right, everything on this site was reported on other sites two years ago. Say, anybody hear about that new Radiohead ‘pay what you want’ thing?)
-Aug. 25: Imogen Heap and Shonen Knife
-Sept. 8: Sondre Lerche and Pete Yorn + Scarlett Johansson (very excited for both; no joke)
-Sept. 16: Midaircondo (No word yet on a US release)

Interesting
-Out today: George Strait, Raekwon, Anna Ternheim, Queen Latifah and Patrick Wolf
-Aug. 18: Reba McEntire and Jay Reatard
-Aug. 25: Woody Guthrie (massive compilation from Rounder)
-Sept. 8: Amerie and Yo La Tengo
-Sept. 15: Mariah Carey
-Sept. 22: Why?, They Might Be Giants, and Porcupine Tree

Nobody cares
-Out today: Cobra Starship
-Aug. 18: Lil’ Wayne
-Aug 25: Arctic Monkeys
-Sept. 8: Vivian Girls
-Sep. 14: Muse (album is actually titled The Resistance)
-Sep. 22: Madonna (shoddy greatest hits collection)
-Sep. 29: La Roux (Her hair is slick, but, eh)

So, more news, more news. Last Wednesday, I went with my aunt and cousin to a snazzy swim club and I finally got the meaning of [adult swim] (bear with me). Most obviously, it’s the few hours in the Cartoon Network pool that adults get to enjoy—but, hey, that idea’s been violated by every twelve-year old watching FLCL (myself, admittedly, many moon kingdoms ago). But more importantly, [adult swim] lets adults play in the pool and act like total idiots, tongue-in-cheek—a sentiment shows like Squidbillies and ATHF clearly embody. But, hey, enough serious business. Besides, all the adults at this swim club were all Squidwards about it, and they opted not to go in the water. And while I’m of adult swim age (so lulzy-it’s-painful, amirite?), I was too busy listening to my shitty music to care. Which brings me to this—my recommendations of the week.  read more »

Shawn---the male element of one of Squid's favorite bands, Lullatone---has replied to fan's request for a reissue for My Petit Melodies by offering a limited-time free download of the whole album. How cool is that? You can find the original post and download link at Lullatone's official website. As of now (August 7th, if for some reason you can't read the post date), the link is still active. It was posted August 2nd, and I think Sendspace usually keeps files active for seven days by default. So you have at least two days to download yet another amazing piece from Lullatone's repetoire!

Just in case you don't keep up with current events (why would you, when you can listen to Animal Collective and smoke pot all day?), American journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee have been pardoned and will be coming home from North Korea. Now, two things. First, I'll admit---while this story began way back in March, I've only just learned about it; as I'm sure many other people just have. So, yeah, 'mainstream news hound blah blah blah'. Second, some people may have been supporting Ms. Ling and Ms. Lee because Ling's sister is Lisa Ling. "Hey, she's the relative of a journalist we like; LET'S SUPPORT HER WITH THE FULLNESS OF OUR HEARTS." Stop. Coming from someone who has been around real (as in non-blog) journalists for most of his life, let me tell you. A regular sports beat in some obscure Massachusetts villa can be a hassle. Being imprisoned in North Korea is obviously that difficulty multiplied by a thousand white suns. Thus, after that sort of ordeal, I wish to best to these two young women as they come back to America

You know, America? The country where journalists aren't prosecuted?

So, here's the wacky twist...Bill Clinton was the one who got the pardon! Pretty sly, huh? Then again no one does ‘sly’ better than the Clintons.

Nah, just kidding! Good job, Bill. Perfect star, seriously. With the amount of shit we’ve flung at the guy, he deserves a few jokes not based on pimping, cigars, et cetera. Now we can make jokes about him and Kim Jong Il, which are obviously of a higher pedigree than “Hur hur hur, he hit dat.” Also, I get the feeling that Clinton somehow violated the Logan Law, but that’s pretty swell.

Here’s some music, in honor of Bill’s achievements today, because this:

…is the face of a champion

Mp3: "William’s Last Day at Work" by Venus Hum

In my family, we like to celebrate birthdays for a week, collectively (and aptly) known as a 'birthday week'. I usually like to take this approach to some of my favorite artists, as can be seen with November's Bjork week. Well, you see, I was all hyped to have a whole week for Kate Bush, too, but things fell from the foreground and before you knew it, I missed posting on her actual birthday---July 31st. So, four days late, here are some nice demos I posted back in December, along with a few Kate Bush classics. Enjoy!

Demos: "Babooshka", "On Fire Inside a Snowball" , "Hammer Horror", "Pick the Rare Flower", "Stranded on the Moonbase"

Classics: "And Dream Of Sheep", "James and the Cold Gun"

Kate Bush at Amazon Mp3
Kate Bush at Lala

Given that I’d like to keep Squid Can in the mostly-workable state that it’s in right now, I’ve devised a posting schedule for the fall, as promised. These changes are effective from September 1st 7th and forward. First off: there will be no posts on Wednesdays or Sundays. None at all, unless I feel like it. So, you know. “ Just deal”, or whatever it is they say in Da Hills.

So what about the remainder of the week? Let’s break it down piece by piece. Album reviews will be posted every three days (Wednesday and Sunday excluded). Book reviews will be posted once a week; if I’m unable to do that, then it’ll be every two or three weeks (this will likely be the case as we move into the winter months, where school work and other issues increase in number).

Features (mixtapes and photo galleries included) will be posted once a week, likely on Fridays. Bumps—if I ever get around to making a few again—will be posted as are the news posts. And how will news posts be distributed? I’ll aim for video-posts on Thursdays, but for all assorted varieties of news, there’ll be one a day provided there’s been no other posts that day. So, let’s try to look at a three-week agenda, huh?  read more »

Commercial Album by The Residents
1980, Ralph Records, 40 tracks at 51 min.
Listen Buy CD

RATING: 4.8 out of 5

NOTE: This is the first review with the all new review format. As you can see, it looks bright, stylish, and more accessible in general. Also note the new rating scale. Ratings are still on a scale of five, but each rating is now accompanied by any number in the decimal place, instead of just 0 or 5. I'll keep this scale for a while to see how it works. Thanks for reading!

If there’s one thing Americans are good at, it’s being pretentious. Sure, those Brits can knock about their Graham Greene references, and the French made smelling and whining about the futility of existence go hand-in-hand, but no one can quite touch America in terms of being super-artsy pricks. Take Ezra Pound. Show me a work more directly ostentatious than The Cantos. Well, you can do it, certainly, but where else can you find, “Harump rump rump, Rihaku, John Adams, fascists rule.”

Logically, then, Americans would be extremely jackassy in their musical creations as well. Frank Zappa. John Zorn. John Cage. Zeena Parkins. Animal Collective. For God’s sake, Laurie Anderson sang a song about her boyfriend’s sweaters over bagpipes. A song that, admittedly, I enjoy; but a song that is nonetheless mind-blowingly skilled in showing off Anderson’s master’s in not-having-a-real-job.

Wedged somewhere in-between Laurie Anderson crooning about Superman and Captain Beefheart wearing a mask of trout, there are The Residents. Famous for their own masks (a troupe of eyeballs, and the occasional skeleton), The Residents first caught (pretentious) music critic’s attention with their 1980’s Commercial Album. Based around the matrimony of the pop song and the commercial jingle, Commercial Album is a set of forty songs, each under a minute and ten seconds. Ranging from twisted serenity (“Japanese Watercolor”) to humorously angry (“Give It to Someone Else”), Commercial Album occupies a space between the haberdashery of manufactured pop and the society that has created these constructs.

Indeed, the idea of comparing the brashness of a commercial ditty to an allegedly ‘emotive’ pop song was exciting to those on the edge of art. The main idea here is that pop songs, if stripped to their core, are no more than a minute of music. Thus, by extension, a song for Rally Cola or Malt-o-Meal is no less artistically valid than a pop song. Yet, honestly, the Commercial Album is hardly something ‘strange’ to the environment in which it was created. Not to say that The Residents owe some great debt to Edward Said (though I guess one could make that case with Eskimo), but the ideological elements that underline the Commercial Album aren’t all that unique. Let’s see, 1980? Don DeLillo would soon be drafting shopping lists to mock suburbia and Carolee Schneemann was unfurling ‘critical scrolls’ from her ‘vajayjay’ (fave buzzword #2 of an old English teacher).

Even lacking a totally original mien does not make Commercial Album a miss. It’s one great piece of music, that much is sure. Even if other, similarly arthouse endeavors were being undertaken in other areas of the arts, The Residents were certainly among the first to do so in music. The music is pretty swell, too. Hear that devilish croon on “Easter Women”? Makes me want to smash some heads. Well, I mean, makes me want to smash my head because I have no idea what it’s about. And “My Second Wife”? Find me a song more perfect for a rubber horseman of the apocalypse to march to.

I swear, that sentence makes sense if you hear the song.

And, as worthy of scholarship as The Residents may be, they were (and still are) hardly the sort of band focused on impressing the literati. This music is meant to do much the same thing that most postmodern works do—celebrate or criticize the sometimes-sacred union we have entered into with consumerism. Judging by the Dadaist, “everything is lost so let’s go crazy” attitude displayed on this supremely ‘silly’ disc, The Residents seem fine with just coasting along in the meaningless world they live in. Commercial Album represents the moment when, departing from their nonchalance, they decided to make some ridiculously fun songs about the demise of, well, everything.

From top to bottom: Chris Martin is god, duh;
a typical day behind-the-scenes at Squid Can;
and Lickitung: platinumized

Sorry I haven't been posting, one-guy-who-may-read-this-blog. I have quite a few things to post, too. So, if this post drops off the main page---ha, just kidding, ya rascals. So let's see, what has happened that I need to put in this post? First off, there's a new Coldplay video about, and it's for "Strawberry Swing". Had I not gone to Rolling Stone to read some shitty biased article and seen an ad for the video, I would not have known about this typical Coldplay-fare. In the video---which you can watch at Babelgum (protip: the video player sucks)---Chris Martin takes on his usual role as the Messiah of All Things Good and Fun and rescues a damsel in distress from an over-sized squirrel. Woah, a beautiful maiden having to be rescued by a man! I've never seen, read, or listened to anything like that anywhere, ever. (I don't need to put sarcasm tags on this stuff, do I?)

WO-MAN, LET DOWN YOUR LOADS! CHRIS MARTIN IS HERE TO SAVE YOU!!!!

Animated, of course, in a style guaranteed to make sensitive young men and women swoon with fever at the sight of the (once again) perfectly-coiffed Martin, there's a notable absence of something in the video. Hmm...what could it be? Oh, I know. There's none of the other band members in the video! Martin, though, has time to give a hug to the video's director (?) at the end, demonstrating his appreciation for the work put into animating entirely in chalk; but more importantly to show that he's just a bro, like everyone else.

Seriously, how can you not be put off by the egotism of this band? I had a whole post bashing the "Viva La Vida" video cooked up around Christmas time, but I never posted it. Perhaps I should?

Happier news: Monday, while browsing in Barnes and Noble, I decided to pick up a comic, which I haven't done in a long while. It was five frigging dollars (funny, I seem to remember them being about $2.50 a few years ago), but it was well worth the price. Marvel has taken up the craft of reinventing some of its earliest characters (1940s) for its 70th anniversary. The book I purchased featured the Blonde Phantom, who, admittedly, is one hell of a blonde crime-fighter compared to Chris Martin. Marc Guggenheim crafts a wonderful half-prose, half-panel story that features the Blonde Phantom solving the mystery of a friend's death, replete with pulpy art and colors thanks to Javier Pulido and Javier Rodriguez. Following the sizzling post-feminist rhetoric that caps off Guggenheim's tale with a bang, readers are presented with one new tale and two reprints of Marvex, the Super Robot. Arguably, the funniest part of this section of the book is when a gang of criminals strap Marvex to an electric chair, only to find he absorbs the bolts whilst smiling. The forties, folks! Pick up the issue if you get a chance.

Finally, my cousin, who is now in his 'Pokemans phase', has started collecting the cards. Since he had a double of a Lickitung card---the latest edition, too, from the Platinum set---I asked if I could have it, considering how many ancient cards I had given him. He was happy to oblige, and I was awfully happy to have a Lickitung in my arms again.

Does this post sound more or less ridiculous than one of the Degrassi ones?

Mp3: "Hematogen" by Morgen Mittag

EDIT: Apparently the Lickitung card is two-years-old and it's from the Secret Wonders set? Whatever, I'm keeping those Platinum jokes; they're golden.

I didn't really have anything planned to post tonight, but I did want to post something, so here's some unrelated stuff you might enjoy.

Musics
Mp3: "The Spinning Heart of the Yo-Yo Lobby" by United Nations
Mp3: "Someday" by Maini Sorri
Mp3: "human porkchop" by Scissor Shock

Dealz
Matt & Kim, Grand, $5 at Amazon Mp3
Gang Gang Dance, Sainy Dymphna, $5.99 at Lala
Lisa Hannigan, Sea Sew, $2.99 at Amie Street
The Barbarellas, Queen Of The Galaxy, $1.84 at Amie Street
Kate Bush, The Sensual World, $4.99 at Amazon Mp3 (added 7/27)

(I've only heard Grand so far personally, but the following two acts are supposed to be pretty decent as well. Also, the Lisa Hannigan album went missing. While I was posting this. And the Barbarellas cover just looked interesting. )

Lulz; News

[adult swim's] most awkward Comic Con moments
Sarah Palin countdown clock (What?) (via Jezebel)
New Madonna album art (is unsurprisingly trendy and bland)
AT&T incites shitstorm by banning 4Chan

Hey, Family Guy fans! You know how your favorite show always covers serious issues in a composed-yet-satricically-valid matter? Wow, ridiculing Christianity! That wasn't done in say, oh, I don't know...2. As in the year '2'. As reported by the Los Angeles Times, Macfarlane is upset at Fox because the channel is holding back on airing an abortion-themed episode.

"Boo hoo! You mean I have to wait until the DVD comes out to watch this?" Yeah, I'M SO SORRY.

Of course, given the track record of Family Guy, I'm sure we can expect this to be a Third-Wave Feminist episode that will hold women in high-esteem and treat them as intellectuals and individuals. Somebody call bell hooks; she should watch this shit. I mean, there's only been a few misses by Family Guy in the gender department---like Stewie shooting a prostitute, Meg being raped by Quagmire (paedophilia and podophilia), Meg and Lois being secretly taped by Chris with professional video equipment, Peter's becoming a feminist dispelled by Lois fighting with another woman because it's 'hot', a woman raped on shore by a criminal for the sake of a fucking Aquaman joke, the entire Simpson family being murdered after Quagmire sexes up Marge just so MacFarlane can 'stick it to the man' or whatever, and Lois' sudden dominance in the bedroom becoming a subsequent point of mental scarring for Peter.

Now, don't take me as some Puritan book-burner straight out of a Hawthorne romance. I wouldn't say I'm "offended" by Family Guy. I've found it funny on many occasions, but you won't find me plastering Brian Griffin stickers all over my laptop. My main problem with this sort of situation is that because Family Guy is an immediately accessible medium---sit down on a couch and watch, wow, real tough---it is more likely to be defended by people because they don't have to devote much of anything to understanding it. And when somebody understands something, and they like what they understand, they may try and defend it. Such is the case with Family Guy. Open a dictionary and look up 'absurdist' and ta da, there's your defense. And because Family Guy is apparently something that Samuel Beckett would Tivo, that means all its racist, homophobic, and sexist jokes are just 'absurdist ploys', meant to demonstrate the futility of existence, and to undercut the silliness in degrading someone based on stereotypes that, are in turn, based on nothingness.

Tl;dr: A good defense would be too say that MacFarlane uses 'offensive' jokes to debase the homophobia/racism/sexism that is central to their humor.

But let's be rational here---MacFarlane is not Samuel Beckett, all right? His show is aimed at a young, easygoing sort of demographic, not too concerned with 'serious stuff'. So why should we assume that viewers---to be blunt, teenaged American viewers who aren't too learned in the art of 'subtlety' or 'satire'---will view an episode on abortion and pick up on whatever 'subtle' and 'progressive' hints are in there? Christ, I mean, look at this video; more specifically the comments. Wishing to be raped by a woman?

This is me trying to even begin analyzing that:

In short: don't defend this shit, because people see it as 'TOTALLY RANDOM HUMOR' that is harmless, but really---what sort of media doesn't indoctrinate you with something? So cut the 'Stop being a stuffy, sensitive loser' act, and call a turd a turd. And please, let there never have to be another Family Guy post on this site EVER AGAIN.

For putting up with this post, here's a cut from the new Portugal. The Man album. The first half is pretty crappy, I'll be honest; but the second half is decent and doesn't leave me yearning for Bonnie Raitt for some reason.

Mp3: People Say by Portugal. The Man