Let’s take it slow. An hour’s worth of music bookended by the record we just completed in our Album Discussion group, and the one we’re starting next. In between are a bunch of records from the last 20 or so years that were the stone steps this particular musical journey led me on. I *think* we’re getting back to a normal cadence: I already have one review in the can for tomorrow, and more on deck. Let’s just see what happens.
- The Go-Betweens – “Love Goes On!”
- The Men – “Turn It Around”
- Iceage – “On My Fingers”
- Fleet Foxes – “Helplessness Blues”
- The National- “Mistaken for Strangers”
- Arcade Fire – “Reflektor”
- Interpol – “PDA”
- Bloc Party – “Mercury”
- LCD Soundsytem – “Dance Yrself Clean”
- Father John Misty- “Bored in the USA”
- Yo La Tengo – “Mushroom Cloud of Hiss”
Not a lot in the way of commentary this week. The Go-Betweens were a brand new discovery for me, and “Love Goes On!” is one of those perfect openers, giving you in a few minutes everything you need to know about the band and the album. It’s a complete discovery, one of the best things about the music club my friends and I put together.
On the other side of the coin, I’ve long been a fan of Yo La Tengo, but like a lot of things I love I never devour everything (there are, of course, exceptions); I leave pieces for later, when I feel like my soul needs some extra nourishment. So the mass of noise that is “Mushroom Cloud of Hiss” might be just as much as surprise to me as it is to you, despite my owning at least four YLT albums, and hearing about another half dozen. Not to mention your knowledge and expertise on the subject; who am I to judge?
Go between (ha!) those two and you’ll find the winding path they took me on the last week or so. Much of it came my way during my “fun” corporate years (roughly 2002-2015) where my friend Sean introduced me to the whole college rock radio thing just when bands like Arcade Fire were just breaking out, Father John Misty was simply John, part of Fleet Foxes, and post punk was melding with radio rock in fun way thanks to bands like Bloc Party, The Men, and the very Joy Division-influenced Interpol.
It all brings up an interesting if by no means new thought: that our unique experiences in life influence everything, especially how we perceive and respond to a record. So the path this music took me on could be completely different for someone else, and the things they hear would equally valid because of their perspective and history.
Been on my mind a lot lately.
Be safe, be good to each other. See you next week.
Consuming the Tangible 
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