Sunday, January 30, 2022

Carly Pearce - 29 [EP]: 7 (B+)


# [country] Digital-only anyway. Upped from "liked." Not sure how Christgau got a full A out of this. [6 or 7 listens]

The Miles Davis Quintet - Essential Albums [Cookin'/Relaxin'/Workin'/Steamin']

Not qualified to grade, but I have to imagine this is a 10 (A+)?

Saturday, January 29, 2022

audiobooks - Gothenburg: 7.5 (high B+)

Vinyl and digital only. Vinyl prohibitively expensive.

Yard Act - The Overload [honorable mention]

:-) [Five listens. Might end up buying this if it does well on year-end polls.]

Jamila Woods - Legacy! Legacy! [honorable mention]

:-)

Ronald Shannon Jackson [and the Decoding Society] - batch review

Exactly the kind of thing I'm not qualified to grade. Definitely interesting and noteworthy. Gave them each three listens:

Nasty [4 listens]
Mandance
Barbeque Dog

Nasty is the one I'm tempted to get, since both Hull and Christgau rate this A-, but it's so ridiculously expensive that I'm not going to bother, or even put it on a wantlist.

Greenberger Greenberg Cebar - Tell Me That Before [honorable mention]

:-)

David Greenberger/Paul Cebar Tomorrow Sound - They Like Me Around Here [honorable mention]

:-)

The Jeffrey Lewis & Peter Stampfel Band: Both Ways: 8 (A-)

I found it hard to believe that this was as good as Christgau, who gave it what I would call a 9.5 (high A), thinks. He's personal friends with both of them, which no doubt affects his judgement, at the very least docking it to a 9 (A) or even an 8.5 (high A-). Given that it was non-streamable (except for two not very impressive tracks), I would have had to pay $12 for digital tracks to even hear it. I don't pay for digital tracks ever (or hardly ever), but especially would not do so for something unheard. Even more so on the recommendation of only Christgau (see above). But ultimately I broke down and bought the digital tracks. If Hull gave it an A, I would pay to print it to CD.

John Coltrane Quartet - Ballads [placeholder]

Not qualified to grade, but it sounds very nice.

Jeff Beck - Truth [honorable mention]

:-) [Four listens]

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers - Southern Accents

:-|

Cate Le Bon - Reward

:-|

Dave - We're All Alone In This Together

:-|

Sunday, January 23, 2022

Sublime - 40 oz. to Freedom

:-(

Britney Spears - Oops!...I Did It Again [honorable mention]

:-) [But ultimately purchased as part of a 3 CD set in slipcase for $10 shipped]

Louis Armstrong & Duke Ellington - The Great Summit: The Master Takes [placeholder]

Not qualified to grade. 3 listens, sounds nice.

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Georgia Blue: 7 (B+)


# [covers]

The Smiths - Complete: 9 (A)

Massacre - Killing Time: 7 (B+)

# [experimental]

Beethoven - Symphony No. 5 in C minor

Really just a placeholder. This and No. 7 are high up on a lot of lists (not so much No. 6), but not as high as No. 3 and No. 9. Anyway, listened to both 5 and 7 three times. Seemed to like the 7th slightly better.

Bjork - Greatest Hits: 7 (B+)

# [best of]

Malcolm McLaren - Duck Rock: 7 (B+)

# [novelty]

The Dead Milkmen - Bucky Fellini: 7 (B+)

Would get, but way too expensive on CD (1987 – so originally issued in that format).

The Stylistics - Round 2: 7 (B+)


Upped from honorable mention. I'm big on the Philly sound.

The Dead Milkmen - Big Lizard in My Backyard: 8 (A-)

The Dead Milkmen - Beelzebubba

:-|

Bjork - Vespertine: liked

[De-shelved]

Youssou N'Dour et le Super Etoile de Dakar - Mbalax: 8 (A-)


Supposedly on CD but I can’t find it anywhere.

Sufjan Stevens & Angelo De Augustine - A Beginner's Mind [liked]

:-)

Super Furry Animals - Rings Around the World [liked]

:-)

Weather Report - Heavy Weather

:-|

Bob Marley and the Wailers - Soul Rebels [1970]

:-(

Luke Haines - Setting the Dog on the Post-Punk Postman [honorable mention]

:-)

Saturday, January 22, 2022

Friday, January 21, 2022

Digital Underground - Sex Packets: 8 (A-)

I got the 2 CD version, containing This Is an EP Release, and put my stand-alone copy of the EP in the sell pile.

Sunday, January 2, 2022

KC and the Sunshine Band - KC and the Sunshine Band: 7.5 (high B+)

# [r&b] Released in 1975. "I Get Lifted" is the only song I’ll really be missing by not shelving this. [Pretty sure I now have this as part of the Original Album Series on this band, although I can't locate that box at the moment.]

Boredoms - Super ae [honorable mention]

:-)

Magdalena Bay - Mercurial World

:-|

Hamilton Leithauser and Rostam Batmanglij - I Had a Dream That You Were Mine [honorable mention]

:-)

Bob Marley and the Wailers - African Herbsman

:-| [a/k/a Soul Revolution]

Arlo Parks - Collapsed in Sunbeams: 7.5 (high B+)

# [R&B]

Jazmine Sullivan - Heaux Tales [honorable mention]

:-)

Wolf Alice - Blue Weekend [honorable mention]

:-)

Lil Nas X - Montero [honorable mention]

:-)

2022 Single Listens (unless 2 otherwise noted)

Jimmy Cliff - Refugees
Infinity Knives & Brian Ennals - King Cobra
Alex G - God Save the Animals
Arctic Monkeys - The Car
Snake Chain - Snake Chain
Willie Nelson - Willie and Family Live
Femi Kuti / Made Kuti - Legacy +
Silkmoney - I Don’t Give a F*ck About This Rap ...
The Grateful Dead - Dick's Picks Vol. 33: Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, CA 10/76 [sampled]
Owiny Sigoma Band - The Lost Tapes
Pierre Kwenders - Jose Louis and the Paradox of Love
The Movers - Vol​.​1 - 1970​-​1976
Piri & Tommy - froge.mp3
Endure - Special Interest
CEO Trayle - HH5
Tinariwen -  Kel Tinariwen
David Bowie - The Next Day
Linda Hoover - I Mean to Shine
Built to Spill - The Normal Years [two listens]
Michel Polnareff - Live at the Roxy
The Lone Bellow – The Lone Bellow
Bob Marley and the Wailers - The Best of (1974) [very early material]
The Foo Fighters - The Essential
Prince - Come
The Grateful Dead - Road Trips Vol. 1 No. 4: San Francisco, CA 10/21-22/78 [sampled - terrible]
Spoon - Lucifer on the Moon [“dub” of Sofa – two listens]
Nicholas Craven & Boldy James - Fair Exchange No Robbery
Lil Peep - Come Over When You're Sober, Pt. 2
The Replacements - For Sale: Live at Maxwell's 1986
Soft Cell - Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret
Loraine James - Building Something Beautiful for Me
Bad Religion - Christmas Songs
BaianaSystem - OxeAxeExu
Brahms - Symphony No. 1 in E minor
Brahms - Symphony No. 4 in C minor
Bach - The Goldberg Variations, BWV 988 [Glenn Gould]
Beethoven - Piano Sonata No. 12
Beethoven - Piano Sonata No. 13
Starlight Mints - The Dream That Stuff Was Made of
The Specials - More Specials
Dessa - Ides
Mon Laferte - Seis [53 out of 62 on Hull 2021 “A” list]
Gift - Multum In Parvo
A Soldier's Sad Story: Vietnam Through the Eyes of Black America 1966-73 [two listens]
Jucara Marcal - Delta Estacio Blues
Guelewar - Halleli N'Dakarou
Thione Seck - Chauffeur Bi
Cheikh Lo - Jamm
Idrissa Diop - Cheikh Tidiane Tall 
Young Thug - I'm Up
Buck Meek - Buck Meek [EP]
Bush Tetras - Boom in the Night (Original Studio Recordings 1980-1983)
Fulu Miziki - Ngbaka
Neil Young - Storytone [orchestral backing]
Neil Young - Landing on Water
Neil Young and the Shocking Pinks - Everybody’s Rockin’
Neil Young - A Letter Home (solo acoustic covers in phone booth)
Neil Young - This Note’s for You
Neil Young and Promise of the Real - The Visitor
Damu the Fudgemunk - Conversation Peace
Buck Meek - Two Saviors
Jazz Spastiks - Camera of Sound
Zilla Rocca - Vegas Vic [two listens]
The Ano Nobo Quartet - The Strings of Sao Domingos
First Aid Kit - The Lion's Roar
First Aid Kit - Stay Gold
Jaubi - Nafs at Peace
Various Artists - Ampiano Now
Pegboy - Strong Reaction
Benji. & Spillage Village - Smile, You’re Alive!
Pale Saints - In Ribbons
Hassan Wargui - Tiddukla [two listens]
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Unlimited Love
Ibibio Sound Machine - Electricity
Rory Gallagher - Live! In Europe
DJ Shadow - Diminishing Returns [dj mixtape]
Carla Olson & Mick Taylor - Sway: The Best of
Various Artists - Ohm: The Early Gurus of Electronic Music [CDs 2 and 3]
Thinking Fellers Union Local 282 - Lovelyville
Tears for Fears - The Tipping Point
Clay Harper - They'll Never Miss a Five
MJ Lenderman - Boat Songs
DJ Scratch and RZA - Saturday Afternoon Kung Fu Theater
The Rolling Stones - Live at the El Mocambo
Eddie Gale - Ghetto Music
Burning Spear - Live at the Montreaux Jazz Festival 2001
Dubblestandart [Lee "Scratch" Perry & Ari Up] - Return from Planet Dub
Amine - Limbo
Two Shell - Icons
Mxmtoon - Rising
Master Musicians Of Jajouka - Jajouka Between The Mountains
Mista Savona - Havana Meets Kingston Part 2
Omar Pene and Super Diamono - Direct from Dakar
Leonard Cohen - Hallelujah & Songs From His Albums
King Wasui Ayinde Marshal I - Talazo Fuji Music Party!
S. E. Rogie - Dead Men Don't Smoke Marijuana
Noori & His Dorpa Band - Beja Power! Electric Soul & Brass from Sudan's Red Sea Coast
Nova Twins - Supernova
Abida Parveen - Mehfil-E-Ghazal
Various ‎Artists - Zaire: Musiques Urbaines a Kinshasa
Don Omar - The Last Don [on RS best debut albums list]
Orchestra Volta-Jazz - Air Volta [very early and somewhat rudimentary]
The Melodians - Pre-Meditation
Various Artists - Bobo Yeye: Belle Epoque in Upper Volta
Horace Andy - Horace Andy's Dub Box: Rare Dubs 1973-1976
Horace Andy - Midnight Scorchers [dub of Midnight Rockers] [2 listens]
Horace Andy - Good Vibes [dubs after old tracks - Blood & Fire style]
Le Seigneur [Tabu Ley] Rochereau - Le Seigneur Rochereau a l'Olympia
Eminem - Curtain Call: The Hits [just get the first 4 major label albums]
Eminem - Curtain Call 2 [way too long - albums aren't that good]
Water Damage - Repeater
Pablo Moses - Live to Love
BKO - Djine Bora
Cheekface - Too Much to Ask
Iggy Pop - Zombie Birdhouse [choice cut: "Eat or Be Eaten"]
Lee "Scratch" Perry - King Scratch (Musical Masterpieces from the Upsetter Ark-ive)
Jamal Moss [Hieroglyphic Being] - Thanks 4 the Tracks U Lost
Various - The Trojan Story
Lupe Fiasco - Drill Music in Zion
Megan Thee Stallion - Traumzine
David Greenberger, Glenn Jones, Chris Corsano - An Idea in Everything [“So You Are” is great]
John Ondolo - Hypnotic Guitar of John Ondolo
Wahenga - Kikwetu Kwetu
Roc Marciano & The Alchemist - The Elephant Man’s Bones
Gurf Morlix - Cut ‘n Shoot
Blaze Foley - Live at the Austin Outhouse
Various - Bosavi: Rainforest Music From Papau New Guinea [two listens]
Tommy Womack - Namaste
Dehd - Blue Skies [two listens]
Ranking Joe - Best of
Culture - Culture in Dub: 15 Dub Shots [Heartbeat 1994] [two listens]
Various - Hit Bound! The Revolutionary Sound of Channel One [hodgepodge]
Gregory Isaacs - Slum in Dub
Dillinger - Ready Natty Dreadie
Kanif the Jhatmaster - Flight of the 50 Foot Vimana
I Kong - The Way It Is
Mutabaruka - Life Squared
The Lone Ranger - M16
The Lone Ranger - On the Other Side of Dub [2 listens]
Big Youth - Reggae Gi Dem Dub [dub version of Progress]
The Mountain Goats - Sweden
Avalanche Kaito - Avalanche Kaito
Al-Qasar - Who Are We?
Sampa the Great - As Above, So Below
Nova Twins - Nova Twins EP
Deca - Smoking Gun
John Mayer - Continuum
Papa Wemba & Koffi Olomide - Wake Up [cheesy synths]
Brian Eno - Foreverandevernomore

Bjork - Post [honorable mention]

:-)