TVD's Weekend Shots | Punky One Drop Edition

The one drop drum pattern is the backbone of the reggae rhythm. The backbeat is characterized by the dominant snare drum stroke and bass drum kick both sounding on the third beat of every measure in 4/4 time, while beat one is left empty. Said beat is also the convenient theme for your punky-irie Weekend Shots.

Bob Marley & The Wailers - Punky Reggae Party (Mp3)
Stiff Little Fingers - Doesn't Make It Alright (Mp3)
The Clash - Armagideon Time (Mp3)
The Members - Offshore Banking Business (Mp3)
Madness - The Prince (Mp3)
The Slits - New Town (Mp3)
Joe Jackson Band - In Every Dream Home (A Nightmare) (Mp3)
The Police - The Bed's Too Big Without You (Mp3)
Scritti Politti - Flesh & Blood (Mp3)
Bad Brains - Peace Be Unto Thee (Mp3)

TVD Welcomes Guest DJs for the Weekend Shots! Have ten tracks and a theme? Step right up...

TVD's Shuffle Bored | February 8, 2008

The Friday Five - at random.
The Police - When The World Is Running Down, You Make The Best Of What's Still Around (Mp3)
Joe Jackson - Biology (Mp3)
Felt - I Didn't Mean To Hurt You (Mp3)
The Chameleons - In Shreds (Mp3)
The Longpigs - She Said (Mp3)

On a side note, 'Shuffle Bored' is implicitly an homage to the other fine bloggers out there, their tireless work, and whose efforts end up in rotation on all of our playlists and iPods. Today in particular, TVD tips its hat to Spinster's Rock for the wonderful unearthing of this early Chameleons single. Cheers!

TVD's Daily Wax | "Valley Girl" Soundtrack

That's right - not expecting to exceed any bandwidth today, yet when "Million Miles Away" gets played for the zillionth time - I'm STILL nodding my head right along.

Friday night I'd just got back/I had my eyes shut/Was dreaming about the past/I thought about you while the radio played/I should have got moving/For some reason I stayed/I started drifting to a different place/I realized I was falling off the face of your world/And there was nothing left to bring me back/I'm a million miles away/A million miles away/A million miles away/And there's nothing left to bring me back today/I took a ride, I went downtown/Streets were empty/There was no one around/All the faces that we used to know/Gone from the places that we used to go/I'm at the wrong end of the looking glass/Trying to hold on to the hands of the past and you/And there's nothing left to bring me back/I'm a million miles away/A million miles away/A million miles away/And there's nothing left to bring me back today......

The Plimsouls - A Million Miles Away.mp3
Sparks - Angst In My Pants.mp3
Payolas - Eyes Of A Stranger.mp3
Modern English - I Melt With You.mp3
Psychedelic Furs - Love My Way.mp3

Yep.

Tinkering with the layout again.

TVD's Daily Wax | "First Love, Last Rites" Soundtrack

Washington DC's own Shudder To Think return with another fine soundtrack with 1997's "First Love, Last Rites", the movie adaptation of a collection of short stories by Ian McEwan.

"There's a diner on Second Avenue that serves the best soup in New York City. The radio is always tuned to an oldies station that does not exist outside of its kitchen. Every song is perfect, utterly transporting; simultaneously fresh and timeless, fleeting yet somehow permanent. The feeling is not unlike self-discovery, where what is revealed is something you feel you've known all along, a million-dollar word forever on the tip of your tongue. It is the feeling of springtime, and of limitless possibility; of flesh, and of love. That is the feeling we wanted to evoke with this recording. It embodies the frozen-in-(summer)time love story of Sissel and Joey, the film's two main characters. The songs comprise Sissel's singles collection, which she plays throughout the movie on her plastic turntable, in the couple's stilted, one-room house on the bayou. They are seventeen, and this is their music. It is also our music, to which some friends lent their voices, and so it is their music as well. Hopefully it'll be yours soon, too."

Shudder To Think featuring Jeff Buckley - I Want Someone Badly (Mp3)
Shudder To Think featuring Liz Phair - Erecting A Movie Star (Mp3)
Shudder To Think featuring Robin Zander - Automatic Soup (Mp3)
Shudder To Think featuring John Doe - Speed Of Love (Mp3)
Shudder To Think featuring Matt Johnson - Jelly On The Table (Mp3)

TVD: Maybe it's just us...

...but don't these USB turntables give you the impression that you just plug into your USB port and you're off and listening to your vinyl? No, really -- was it just us? No one ELSE thought the USB friendly ION (or another USB model) would be that user-friendly -- like baby's first turntable?

Here's a handy tip to burnish that learning curve -- it ain't so. The software is WED to the output as a whole. It's not like plugging in your flash drive and boom - there it is on your desktop and you're rolling.

Like TVD thought.

So, time was spent deep in the nooks and crannies of the Mac's preferences. Needle down, hearing stuff, but it's not through the speakers. It's all done through the software program, and that'd be Audacity for ION owners. But ONLY after configuring the Preferences just right. Click to "play track while recording" (yes, we're idiots) and voila! You don't even need to be in archiving mode just to listen, if that's what you're after.

So, there. A whole evening back to you that we lost. But there ARE rewards to come...

TVD's Daily Wax | "Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory" Soundtrack

Don't laugh. I'm not joking...

"Willy Wonka" Soundtrack - Pure Imagination (Mp3)
"Willy Wonka" Soundtrack - (I've Got A) Golden Ticket (Mp3)
"Willy Wonka" Soundtrack - Oompa Loompa (Mp3)
"Willy Wonka" Soundtrack - Everlasting Gobstoppers/Oompa Loompa (Mp3)
"Willy Wonka" Soundtrack - I Want It Now/Oompa Loompa (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax | "Velvet Goldmine" Soundtrack

This week, TVD revels in a few movie soundtracks that don't come immediately to mind when thinking of "best soundtracks" but ever so rightly should.

First up, the soundtrack to Todd Haynes' 1998 film, "Velvet Goldmine" -- an utterly forgettable movie with a thoroughly rewarding soundtrack featuring DC's own Shudder To Think AND Radiohead's Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood, David Gray, Suede's Bernard Butler, Roxy Music's Andy Mackay, The Stooges' Ron Asheton, Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore and Steve Shelley, Minutemen's Mike Watt, Gumball's Don Fleming, and Mark Arm of Mudhoney. From ye olde Wikipedia: The soundtrack features new songs written for the film by Pulp, Shudder To Think and Grant Lee Buffalo, as well as many early glam rock compositions, both covers and original versions. The Venus in Furs covers several Roxy Music songs with Thom Yorke channeling Bryan Ferry on vocals, Placebo covers T.Rex's "20th Century Boy," Wylde Ratttz and Ewan McGregor cover The Stooges' "T.V. Eye", and Teenage Fanclub and Donna Matthews cover The New York Dolls' "Personality Crisis." Lou Reed, Brian Eno, T.Rex, and Steve Harley songs from the period are also included. The album is rounded out by a piece of Carter Burwell's film score.

The Venus In Furs - 2HB (Mp3)
Placebo - 20th Century Boy (Mp3)
Shudder To Think - Ballad Of Maxwell Demon (Mp3)
Shudder To Think - Hot One (Mp3)
Grant Lee Buffalo - The Whole Shebang (Mp3)

TVD's Weekend Shots

I said to our Guest DJ from the past two weeks, "John, the readers wanna know how the conversation with your significant other turned out?" To which he replied, "As with most adult conversations you need to check back with me in 5 years to know how it really went."

(True enough.)

"Most important decisions in life are made between two people in bed. I found that out at my expense." - Billy Bragg

A House - When I First Saw You (Mp3)
Guided By Voices - Acorns & Orioles (Mp3)
Kitchens Of Distinction - Drive That Fast (Mp3)
The Caribbean - Heaven Knows (Mp3)
Kings Of Convenience - Love Is No Big Truth (Mp3)
Joy Division - Love Will Tear Us Apart (Mp3)
Pale Saints - Sight Of You (Mp3)
Mark Ronson - Stop Me (Mp3)
Life Without Buildings - The Leanover (Mp3)
A House - Take It Easy On Me (Mp3)

TVD welcomes YOU as Guest DJ. Got the balls and ten tracks to share? Send us a note...

TVD's Shuffle Bored | February 1, 2008

Five at random reveals TVD's power pop leanings this morning...
The Fratellis - Whistle For The Choir (Mp3)
Tommy Keene - The Fog Has Lifted (Mp3)
Jellyfish - That Is Why (Live) (Mp3)
The Martial Arts - Don't Want To Talk (Mp3)
The Raspberries - Go All The Way (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax | Thin Lizzy "BBC Live in Concert"

This, from the BBC Radio One Archives, is the last time Thin Lizzy was to take the stage with Phil Lynott as frontman. Try not to tear up at the last playing of " Still In Love With You." Dare 'ya...

Thin Lizzy - Baby Please Don't Go (Mp3)
Thin Lizzy - A Night In The Life Of A Blues Singer (Mp3)
Thin Lizzy - The Sun Goes Down (Mp3)
Thin Lizzy - Rosalie Medley - Rosalie/Dancing In The Moonlight/The Cowgirl Song (Mp3)
Thin Lizzy - Still In Love With You (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax | Prefab Sprout "From Langley Park to Memphis"

Sadly, you can hear the wheels coming off the cart on this one; the plot being all but forgotten. (Stevie Wonder and Pete Townsend on a Sprout LP? Naah.) Yet, there WERE a smattering of fine moments...

Prefab Sprout - I Remember That (Mp3)
Prefab Sprout - Nancy (Let Your Hair Down For Me) (Mp3)
Prefab Sprout - The Golden Calf (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax | The Replacements "Don't Tell A Soul"

I saw The Replacements on this tour at Lisner Auditorium here in DC. While their live shows were notoriously hit or miss -- that night they were spot-on. Thirty songs in an hour. As it should be.

The Replacements - Talent Show.mp3
The Replacements - Achin' To Be.mp3
The Replacements - They're Blind.mp3
The Replacements - Darlin' One.mp3
The Replacements - Rock 'N' Roll Ghost.mp3

This Was This Is It

Is This It from Goldenfiddle on Vimeo.

So, how to explain the bad acid flashback that was the cover for the US release?

TVD's Daily Wax | Nick Heyward "From Monday to Sunday"

Why, I used to listen to "How Do You Live Without Sunshine" 24/7, from Monday to Sunday. (Add red wine, stir.)

Nick Heyward - How Do You Live Without Sunshine (Mp3)
Nick Heyward - Into Your Life (Mp3)
Nick Heyward - January Man (Mp3)
Nick Heyward - Kite (Mp3)
Nick Heyward - Mr. Plain (Mp3)

The Washington Post on Orpheus Records Closing

Rick Carlisle at Orpheus Records in Clarendon. "They're not making any more originals of albums. Vinyl may disappear as baby boomers disappear." (Photo by John Mcdonnell)

Turnarounds Are Tough When You Can Only Go 33-1/3
By Marc Fisher
Middle-aged man walks in to price a first-edition vinyl Bob Dylan album. Young woman collects a John Prine LP for her father. Longtime customer and vinyl enthusiast browses the latest rock reissues. And then, in a busy midday hour at Orpheus Records in Clarendon, the phone rings: It's the landlord, and the news is good -- sort of. Orpheus, already displaced from Georgetown in 1999 after a couple of decades there, is still going to lose its storefront on Wilson Boulevard, but the date of execution may be delayed.

Owner Rick Carlisle greets the news with a shake of the head. He is psychologically prepared for the end; a going-out-of-business sale banner is already waving outside. But the daunting task of somehow unloading 120,000 record albums weighs on him.

Read the full article here.

TVD's Weekend Shots

Guest DJ, John Foster returns with ten more tracks furthering last week's conversation. John is a funny guy who writes depressing songs under the guise of his Sad Crocodile moniker. You may also know him from his design work or various books and web columns.

"I have spent the past week arguing with my significant other of serious "adult" issues and it has reminded me that I married someone not to make me happy (although she is certainly capable of that with very little effort) but rather to keep me on my toes and constantly interested. I am not reliant on forward motion but I refuse to have anything stand pat. I get fidgety when that happens. I am sure the bulk of it is buried in some insecurities that lurk deep inside me so I have decided to embrace that notion and fashion a playlist for your weekend in that mode. 10 songs about being unsure in your relationship (that make me happy anyway.)"

Kristin Hersh - Me and My Charms (Mp3)
Morrissey - Tomorrow (Mp3)
Sharkboy - Razor (Mp3)
The Lucy Show - Part of Me Now (Mp3)
Disco Inferno - I'm Still In Love (Mp3)
The Changes - Her, You and I (Mp3)
Camper Van Beethoven - One of These Days (Mp3)
Belle and Sebastian - Seeing Other People (Mp3)
Clearlake - Wonder if the Snow Will Settle (Mp3)
Daryll-Ann - I Could Never Love You (Mp3)

Want to Guest DJ one week at TVD? Let us know...

TVD's Shuffle Bored | January 25, 2008

Five at random finds the 'pod a bit introspective this morning...
Graham Parker - You Can't Be Too Strong (Mp3)
The Blue Nile - The Days Of Our Lives (Mp3)
The Bathers - Yellow Crombie (Mp3)
Elbow - The Everthere (Mp3)
China Crisis - Christian (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax | KISS "Gene Simmons"

Simply put, from a branding perspective, one of the finest LP covers ever. In fact, the complete series of four is outstanding. (No foolin'.) Cover painting; Eraldo Carugati, Design; Howard Marks Advertising, Inc.

KISS/Gene Simmons - Radioactive (Mp3)
KISS/Gene Simmons - See You Tonight (Mp3)
KISS/Gene Simmons - Mr. Make Believe (Mp3)
KISS/Gene Simmons - Always Near You_Nowhere To Hide (Mp3)
KISS/Gene Simmons - When You Wish Upon A Star (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax | The Jimi Hendrix Experience "Electric Ladyland"

Simply put, one of the finest LP covers ever. Art Direction; Ed Thrasher, photography; Karl Ferris. Known as "the Innovator of Psychedelic Photography," Ferris was the personal photographer to Jimi Hendrix and Donovan, and shot the cover of Hendrix’s “Are You Experienced” album and Donovan’s “A Gift From a Flower to a Garden.” He took some of the most unforgettable photographs of the 1960’s and was commissioned to do a multitude of prominent concert posters. He also received the compliment of a lifetime when Hendrix remarked to him on seeing his portfolio, “You‘re doing with photography what I’m doing with music - going far out beyond the limits.".

The Jimi Hendrix Experience - All Along The Watchtower (Mp3)
The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Crosstown Traffic (Mp3)
The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Long Hot Summer Night (Mp3)
The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Rainy Day, Dream Away (Mp3)
The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Voodoo Child (Slight Return) (Mp3)

TVD Upgrades to the ION USB Turntable...

Some quick first impressions:
"Huh, this box is LIGHT."
"Ah, I see...it's plastic. (Drag.)"
"Hey, it took me only a half hour to get from this...


...to this. And I'm no technophile..."

Next up, getting familiar with the Audacity software that comes with the ION -- which seems to be where the learning curve actually comes into play...

TVD's Daily Wax | T-Rex "The Slider"

Simply put, one of the finest LP covers ever. Photography; Ringo Starr.

T-Rex - Metal Guru (Mp3)
T-Rex - The Slider (Mp3)
T-Rex - Telegram Sam (Mp3)
T-Rex - Ballrooms Of Mars (Mp3)
T-Rex - Main Man (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax | Mott The Hoople "The Hoople"

Simply put, one of the finest LP covers ever. Roslav Szaybo; sleeve concept and design, John Brown; photography, Kari-Ann; the lovely model.

Mott The Hoople - The Golden Age Of Rock N' Roll (Mp3)
Mott The Hoople - Marionette (Mp3)
Mott The Hoople - Crash Street Kidds (Mp3)
Mott The Hoople - Born Late '58 (Mp3)
Mott The Hoople - Roll Away The Stone (Mp3)

Orpheus and Strangeland Records: R.I.P.

Confirmed to TVD this morning is the sad news that Arlington's Orpheus Records, one of that last surviving brick-and-mortar vinyl shops in the area is shutting its doors on April 1. Prices have been slashed 30% on all used records and much of the still-sealed merch will be 30% off as well. A harried employee this morning asked us to visit for details which we'll do over the coming days.

Update: TVD's just back from a few hours of rummaging through the stacks over at Orpheus and the place was wall-to-wall vinyl enthusiasts. My first thought was how sad is this -- all of these customers here NOW that the store is shutting down? Literally there was a line and a significant wait to just check out. (Two guys in front of me bought 45 and 75 LP's respectively. The stuff's going out the door folks.) TVD inquired about the closure to the bearded owner who said it isn't his wish to shutter at all - his lease is up and the landlord refuses to renew. There isn't an option for him but to close. Asked if he'll relocate, his comment was that after the move from Georgetown to Arlington, he vowed to never move again and that seems to be the prevailing notion. Orpheus will indeed shut its doors for good on 4/1.

In other closing news, the City Paper has reported the announced closing of Annandale's metal and industrial niche shop Strangeland Records on March 17. Dan Boyd, a Strangeland employee since 2006 who plays bass for Fairfax metal band the Seventh Gate, admits. “To be completely honest, the metal scene in D.C. just isn’t that great.” Read more here.

TVD's Weekend Shots

This week TVD welcomes a guest DJ for your Weekend Shots: John Foster is a funny guy who writes depressing songs under the guise of his Sad Crocodile moniker. You may also know him from his design work or various books and web columns.

"I have spent the past week arguing with my significant other of serious "adult" issues and it has reminded me that I married someone not to make me happy (although she is certainly capable of that with very little effort) but rather to keep me on my toes and constantly interested. I am not reliant on forward motion but I refuse to have anything stand pat. I get fidgety when that happens. I am sure the bulk of it is buried in some insecurities that lurk deep inside me so I have decided to embrace that notion and fashion a playlist for your weekend in that mode. 10 songs about being unsure in your relationship (that make me happy anyway.)"

The Fall - Frenz (Mp3)
Translator - Everywhere That I'm Not (Mp3)
The Cure - In Between Days (Mp3)
Billy Bragg - Must I Paint You A Picture (Mp3)
Black Kids - Not Going to Teach Your Boyfriend to Dance (Mp3)
The Harvest Ministers - You Do My World The World of Good (Mp3)
Prefab Sprout - When Love Breaks Down (Mp3)
The Mountain Goats - See America Right (Mp3)
McLusky - She Will Only Bring You Happiness (Mp3)
Boyracer - He Gets Me So Hard (Mp3)

TVD's Shuffle Bored | January 18, 2008

Simply. At. Random.
David Vandervelde - Murder in Michigan (Mp3)
The Chameleons - Caution (Live) (Mp3)
Blue Ash - Abracadabra (Have You Seen Her?) (Mp3)
20/20 - Tell Me Why (Mp3)
Two People - Rescue Me (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax | Crowded House "Together Alone"

The late Tower Records' self-published magazine 'Pulse' crossed my mind the other day. If there ever was a publication with less discerning taste, I've yet to see it. Each CD or artist interview was positively fawning. "Well honey, here we are RIGHT in the Tower Records ready to purchase this new Insane Clown Posse CD but Tower themselves says it's a boatload of crap - so why bother?!" That'd be self-defeating, right? So, every review spoke to SOMETHING redeeming for ANY CD, and let's face it, Insane Clown Posse? (Shite.) What 'Pulse' did have as a feature was something called "Desert Island Discs" -- the ten or so LPs or what have you that you'd want to turn your new pal Friday onto while stranded on the aforementioned desert island -- and just listen to forever. And it was a pretty decent monthly feature. You could tell basically who you'd want to immediately hang out with given their taste in music versus the guy you'd wanna whack with a bat. Which brings me to today's selection: "Together Alone" by Crowded House. I'd turn to Friday and he'd be singing "Well, I've been locked out/ I've been locked in..." and we'd laaaaaugh. He makes great Mojitos too, that Friday.

Crowded House - Kare Kare (Mp3)
Crowded House - Black And White Boy (Mp3)
Crowded House - Walking On The Spot (Mp3)
Crowded House - Skin Feeling (Mp3)
Crowded House - Together Alone (Mp3)

Mojito Recipe
3 fresh mint sprigs
2 tsp sugar
3 tbsp fresh lime juice
1 1/2 oz light rum
club soda

In a tall thin glass, crush part of the mint with a fork to coat the inside. Add the sugar and lime juice and stir thoroughly. Top with ice. Add rum and mix. Top off with *chilled* club soda (or seltzer). Add a lime slice and the remaining mint, and serve. Enjoy!