June 27, 2013
Miracler
Seth Robson
Location
NYC
A Season 3 Miracler Returns!
In Jan. '10, Seth treated us to bitter/sweet, a mix which, had it arrived on vinyl or cassette, would have been in quick need of replacing at Prodge HQ due to overuse. That's why I was thrilled when the prodigal returned to the fold for Season 6. He's a day late and a candy bar short (though I'm sure he'll fix the latter soon) but he's definitely nailed down the Miracle part music-wise here.
Stuff you said about bitter/sweet
Nice rainy day mix. Made me remember how Red House Painters "rocked" in comparison to Kozelek's latest stuff. Grizzly Bear and Camera Obscura the other highlights for me. Fun fact of the day: mark kozelek was in "almost famous" as the stillwater band member who wasn't a) billy crudup b) jason lee c) secretly gay. Nice mix. I've decided that "someone great" should be the last song in every mix from here on out. That Camera Obscura album was seriously overlooked last year. Great stuff from start to finish. Funny, I never knew the band Moonshake took their name from a Can song...this mix looks right up my alley. Thanks, Seth! 2009 was mainly bitter. Listening to this mix, consciously mapping it into last year, does bring some sweet. Thanks. Can't believe no one had taken that Sparks gem yet. Also (totally and utterly) loving "We're From Barcelona"--hard to have a bad three minutes with that on. Last two songs also faves. And you're right about Camera Obscura: that album's delectable. Zounds! This is a Vulcan Mind Meld of a mix that's tapped into my chronic low-level melancholia. Really good stuff, Seth - thanks (I think). To second Kelly (and when have I not?), I love it when Sparks shows up on a playlist. And "Someone Great" is hands-down my favorite LCDS song. Thanks for the reminder. Great mix!! Nice mix of old faves (Can, Bcast, Wire, Sparks) and turn ons from young upstarts that this old snob-know it all would have previously, & wrongly dismissed. unheard, even! (Grizzly Bear, Antlers (guessing from band name & vox, Antony is singin'), The Horrors) Also, that Fever Ray track is sounding very Kate Bush HoL era ta me... Thanks for a fab mix, and including one of my all-time '80s faves, "Vapour Trail" by Ride.
Liner Notes from SR
After literally centuries of steady, westward migration, I am the first member of my family to hit the reset button and go back east. Sayonara, San Francisco — hello, Brooklyn. Here are some songs that guided and informed my journey.
1. Kindness - Gee up One of my favorite discoveries of 2011, an Englishman channeling the spirits of early 80s New York ghosts like Arthur Russell for some seriously fun, loose-limbed grooves. This one's so good, he knows there's no point in dragging it out — one of the ballsiest "early" fade-outs you'll ever find.
2. Classixx - Borderline Nothing wrong with Tangerine Dream, from the cover art to the music itself.
3. Breakbot (Featuring Irfane) - Baby I'm Yours This song will be rocking the Rockaways all summer, I guarantee it.
4. Seyu Sayonara - Yamasuki What better way to say "Sayonara" than this forgotten gem, produced by Thomas Bangalter's dad, no less?
5. Foxygen - San Francisco Leave it some sensitive Angelinos to create such a wistful ode to my erstwhile home.
6. Savages - City's Full Another English take that could have come straight out of lower Manhattan. These guys have put out what is probably my favorite album of 2013 so far. The Banshees tangled up with Come, or something equally driving / devastating.
7. OMD - Julia's Song I was at some DFA-sponsored event when one of their employees / house DJs dropped this song (technically, the re-recorded version that was used as a b-side to a Junk Culture-era single.) Sadly, I couldn't find that one online, so this Peel Session recording from 1979 will do. Next time, I'll follow his lead again and go with the Thompson Twins b-sides. Just kidding. Maybe.
8. Dirty Projectors - About To Die It doesn't get much more "Brooklyn" than these guys. Their ability to arrange and execute multi-part vocal harmonies are worth the price of admission.
9. The Sea & Cake - The Cantina Nothing says breezy summer day like The Sea & Cake.
10. Pale Saints - Featherframe I am a superstitious baseball watcher. Just ask my wife. Staring with Game 5 of the NLCS, I had this song in my mind for every pitch. The Giants didn't lose a single game under my foolproof system. So if you're happy the Giants won the World Series again, than these far-too-often-overlooked post-shoegaze masters.
11. DIIV - Doused Nice, propulsive song I would have loved during my proto-goth days in the late 80s. Just forget about his facepalm-inducing interview that circulated around online yesterday and enjoy the music...
12. Lee Hazlewood - If It's Monday Morning Still can't get enough of ol' Lee. He did the wistful sadness thing with just enough cheese to keep it from getting overbearing.
1. Kindness - Gee up One of my favorite discoveries of 2011, an Englishman channeling the spirits of early 80s New York ghosts like Arthur Russell for some seriously fun, loose-limbed grooves. This one's so good, he knows there's no point in dragging it out — one of the ballsiest "early" fade-outs you'll ever find.
2. Classixx - Borderline Nothing wrong with Tangerine Dream, from the cover art to the music itself.
3. Breakbot (Featuring Irfane) - Baby I'm Yours This song will be rocking the Rockaways all summer, I guarantee it.
4. Seyu Sayonara - Yamasuki What better way to say "Sayonara" than this forgotten gem, produced by Thomas Bangalter's dad, no less?
5. Foxygen - San Francisco Leave it some sensitive Angelinos to create such a wistful ode to my erstwhile home.
6. Savages - City's Full Another English take that could have come straight out of lower Manhattan. These guys have put out what is probably my favorite album of 2013 so far. The Banshees tangled up with Come, or something equally driving / devastating.
7. OMD - Julia's Song I was at some DFA-sponsored event when one of their employees / house DJs dropped this song (technically, the re-recorded version that was used as a b-side to a Junk Culture-era single.) Sadly, I couldn't find that one online, so this Peel Session recording from 1979 will do. Next time, I'll follow his lead again and go with the Thompson Twins b-sides. Just kidding. Maybe.
8. Dirty Projectors - About To Die It doesn't get much more "Brooklyn" than these guys. Their ability to arrange and execute multi-part vocal harmonies are worth the price of admission.
9. The Sea & Cake - The Cantina Nothing says breezy summer day like The Sea & Cake.
10. Pale Saints - Featherframe I am a superstitious baseball watcher. Just ask my wife. Staring with Game 5 of the NLCS, I had this song in my mind for every pitch. The Giants didn't lose a single game under my foolproof system. So if you're happy the Giants won the World Series again, than these far-too-often-overlooked post-shoegaze masters.
11. DIIV - Doused Nice, propulsive song I would have loved during my proto-goth days in the late 80s. Just forget about his facepalm-inducing interview that circulated around online yesterday and enjoy the music...
12. Lee Hazlewood - If It's Monday Morning Still can't get enough of ol' Lee. He did the wistful sadness thing with just enough cheese to keep it from getting overbearing.
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17 comments:
Since I was too late to fully annotate this mix, here are a few assorted notes on some of the songs found here:
1. Kindness - Gee up
One of my favorite discoveries of 2011, an Englishman channeling the spirits of early 80s New York ghosts like Arthur Russell for some seriously fun, loose-limbed grooves. This one's so good, he knows there's no point in dragging it out — one of the ballsiest "early" fade-outs you'll ever find.
2. Classixx - Borderline
Nothing wrong with Tangerine Dream, from the cover art to the music itself.
3. Breakbot (Featuring Irfane) - Baby I'm Yours
This song will be rocking the Rockaways all summer, I guarantee it.
4. Seyu Sayonara - Yamasuki
What better way to say "Sayonara" than this forgotten gem, produced by Thomas Bangalter's dad, no less?
5. Foxygen - San Francisco
Leave it some sensitive Angelinos to create such a wistful ode to my erstwhile home.
6. Savages - City's Full
Another English take that could have come straight out of lower Manhattan. These guys have put out what is probably my favorite album of 2013 so far. The Banshees tangled up with Come, or something equally driving / devastating.
7. OMD - Julia's Song
I was at some DFA-sponsored event when one of their employees / house DJs dropped this song (technically, the re-recorded version that was used as a b-side to a Junk Culture-era single.) Sadly, I couldn't find that one online, so this Peel Session recording from 1979 will do. Next time, I'll follow his lead again and go with the Thompson Twins b-sides. Just kidding. Maybe.
8. Dirty Projectors - About To Die
It doesn't get much more "Brooklyn" than these guys. Their ability to arrange and execute multi-part vocal harmonies are worth the price of admission.
9. The Sea & Cake - The Cantina
Nothing says breezy summer day like The Sea & Cake.
10. Pale Saints - Featherframe
I am a superstitious baseball watcher. Just ask my wife. Staring with Game 5 of the NLCS, I had this song in my mind for every pitch. The Giants didn't lose a single game under my foolproof system. So if you're happy the Giants won the World Series again, than these far-too-often-overlooked post-shoegaze masters.
11. DIIV - Doused
Nice, propulsive song I would have loved during my proto-goth days in the late 80s. Just forget about his facepalm-inducing interview that circulated around online yesterday and enjoy the music...
12. Lee Hazlewood - If It's Monday Morning
Still can't get enough of ol' Lee. He did the wistful sadness thing with just enough cheese to keep it from getting overbearing.
I guess I need to dig around for more stringless Lee Hazelwood as I quite enjoyed that number.
Other standouts for me are Foxygen's lovely pop and Savages' Banshees doppelganger. Good stuff-- thanks!
Hey Seth,
How the heck did this all come about? How is Kindness new when they sound so very old, it reminds me of hearing Stereolab for the first time and feeling the weird indescribable musical deja vu.
Where is a skating rink to roller skate to "Baby, I'm yours"? Savages are scary! Like a trip to the city in '83 in a crappy car that might not be reliable enough to get you home.
How did you manage to pull an old OMD song out and put it next to Dirty Projectors and The Sea and Cake and make it work?
What is old and what is new, or east or west in your world Seth? Were you on a plane or a higher plane when you conceived of this song list? Did Lee Hazelwood help you come down? He is good at that.
Thank you for your Cloud Atlas Seth!
I've been listening to this mix over and over today really loving it. That Kindness song is a peach and a great starter. The old & the new are so happy here, together. That seems like a good omen for a cross-country move. Nice stuff!
I really like the Kindness cut. It's so very smooth and that continued through the Classixx cut. I've been hearing a bunch about Savages. This is a great song. The guitar sound is fantastic. I became an instant fan. I'm headed to the record store tomorrow to pick this one up. Same with Dirty Projectors. I've only heard a couple of songs and this one is new. It's really good. I really liked the DIIV cut. They are new to me as well. I'm such a fan of Lee Hazelwood. This is a great song. Thanks for a great mix, Seth.
Thanks for all the feedback, guys. I apologize again for the tardiness — life and work ain't moving for me at a San Francisco pace anymore!
So yes, I wholeheartedly suggest anyone who likes the Kindness track go out and grab a copy of the full LP, World, You Need A Change Of Mind. Really wonderful stuff all the way through. Playing live, he dropped some references to Anita Baker ("Sweet Love") and Adonis ("No Way Back") and it all worked so wonderfully. The Stereolab comparison is right on — they are a band that wears their influences clearly on their sleeve but manages to create their own sound.
I always come back to Lee, though this time it's due to much of his back catalogue being reissued on vinyl, at long last.
As much as I want to aggressively prioritize new songs, old songs always seem to come back and take on new meaning and significance at various points in my life. Can't bury the past, would never want to. I also love finding the strands that connect the old and new, so I'm glad that is appreciated.
We're in a high-level sync, Seth - this mix has been the soundtrack of my house-packing as I prepare to leave the burning west for the banks of the Potomac.
So much going into the favorites folder. Dirty Projectors' newer stuff has been front-and-center for me of late - nice to see them pop up here.
Great mix - thx.
Really dig this mix, Seth. Thank you!
"Baby I'm Yours" is indeed the song of the summer – I'm buying a convertible just so I can subject everyone else to it. A special shout-out for Savages. And Foxygen! "No Destruction" has been in heavy rotation at 10 Temple Street for awhile:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87jIdvGPDj4
Foxygen-
"I left my love in SF - that's okay I was born in LA"
Not sure why, but that line made me laugh out loud every time she sang it. It's not hard to hear those influences, huh?
Nice eclectic mix.
um BREAKBOT?! Shot to the top of my charts and the soles of my feet! Love a song that is impossible not to dance to. Impossible!
This has the Classic (to me) Mix feel of a themeless mix, which I love. I certainly appreciate the Curated Mix, but there's something about the eclectic meanderings of mixes like this that are wide and dreamy and invite me to listen over and over and over again via their diversity and breadth.
Lots of standouts here, really a powerhouse of radness. (Okay, full disclosure: I am not a Dirty Projectors fan. They live in the same place for me as Vampire Weekend...I don't get it, or it doesn't get me. But the greatness of this mix is I don't even notice it. That is a compliment, however lamely put.) Kindness, DIIV, Savages, Classixx. Always love a Lee Hazelwood. And I had just been listening to that OMD lp the day before this mix came out.
I wish I had this on mix tape so I could listen to it super loud in my Mustang as I drove around catcalling construction workers.
Thanks, Seth, for this super winner!
My god, "San Francisco" is catchy.
Wow. Do I ever dig that Savages song. It's like Patti Smith got a much, much rawkier band. (Sorry, Lenny Kaye!)
"San Francisco" is hoot. I also left my heart in San Francisco -- only I wasn't bored anyway. Austin has turned out to be great... so good riddance, ex-wife!
Speakin' of sayonaras, that Yamasuki song really reminds me of Sergio Leone. What's the story?
Thanks for your mix-mastery, Seth.
Hey Seth! Great mix of moods and genres here.... Breakbot was crazy fun. Lots of new stuff to discover here (esp The Sea and Cake and Foxygen). I had a Lee Hazelwood track on my mix too, so you know you I was loving If It's a Monday Morning as the closer. We're sad to see you leave SF, but can't wait to see what Brooklyn brings us for next season's mix!
An amazed thanks for the Pale Saints cut, who knew you were the magic that got the Giants their second title, here I thought it was the double cappuccino I had in my hand! Nice wistful mix, liked the Dirty Pro cut, timeless. All good luck to your move as long as you dont become a Nets fan!
Late responder here Seth. Can't keep up with all the great music coming my way . Gotta say that Doused by DIIV (who they?) rocks my world. I love music that grips you from the first chord and keeps on rocking. What's not to like.
Like Xtina I'm not much into the Dirty Projectors, just don't get the appeal. I did see them open for TV on the Radio at the Fox in Oakland where we stood next next to the parents of one of the female singers. I refrained from giving them my opinion of their daughters band.
But the Pale Saints, now that works for me. Thanks for the introductions.
A timeless mix Seth. I found myself looking up the artists and songs to determine when exactly they were recorded. Nice to see some new, some not so new. You did a nice job coaxing the mix into it's own era. Also love that there is a full on dispute on Wikipedia regarding the reality of Classix. If there is an argument mustn't they exist!
There's a dispute about the reality of Classix? News to me. I actually saw them play a live show in Williamsburg this summer. If they don't exist, it was a helluva hallucination!
Speaking of live shows: Breakbot. They played on the Ed Banger anniversary tour and were the clear highlight of a very strong lineup. Amazing work, both alone behind the sequencers and with the full band coming on stage to back him up.
I would say that Dirty Projectors are not normally a band I would see myself liking, either. Don't know what it is that draws me in, but it does.
I'm too old to switch allegiances to New York sporting clubs. I will always rep for my hometown (San Francisco) Giants, 49ers, Stanford, and the Warriors. I will only make an exception for the newly-reformed Cosmos.
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