Diggin' now... Stereo Total

It was just a random link on a blog to this song, Je Rêve Encore de Toi, from the Berlin-based, German/French/English/Japanese language duo known as Stereo Total.

Here's how the group's Web site described Stereo Total and its music:

The music of the chanson- electro- nonelectro- garage- rock'n'roll- french-pop- rock-à-billy- disco- international- underground- duo Stereo Total can be described as:
40% Yéyétronic, 20% R'n'R, 10% Punkrock, 3% electronic effects, 4% French 60ies beat, 7% genious dilettantism, 1,5% Cosmonaute, 10% really old synthesizers, 10% 8-bit Amiga-sampling, 10% transistor amplifier, 1% really expansive and advanced instruments, a minimalist production, meaning a home- made- trash- garage- sound crossed with underground, authentic as well as amateurish, ironic as well as effective, pop as well as political.
Stereo Total are Françoise Cactus, (from France, drums and vocals) and Brezel Göring (guitar, synthesizer, sampler).

Right. If that sounds as awesome to you as it does to me, click play on the video above, check out this other song 'Prends-Moi' (translated: Take Me), watch the other I linked to above and just generally start exploring the catalogue. The group has released eight albums since 1995 (!) and the way the sound includes so much of the mashup, genre-bending style that's become a staple of recent music is really astonishing. Oh, yeah, and it's a hell of a lot of fun too.

A note on the language, I'm no linguist, but I have read the lyrics in fact do range from English to French and German to Japanese, maybe more. My French isn't what it used to be, but I can pick up pieces here and there. I'd imagine the same would go for German speakers as well, and for Japanese speakers on whichever songs employ that language.

But, really, it's different. It's strange at times. But I'm definitely digging it right now.

5th of July Pickups

As I mentioned earlier, I am indeed leaving D.C. and headed back to Minneapolis. Vinyl-wise, I'm excited to do some digging at my old favorite shops. But I'm quite sad to be leaving CD/Game Exchange, which I've mentioned a number of times on this very blog, mostly because I tend to go there and find great stuff all. the. time.

So, despite the heat today in D.C., I biked on over to CD/Game Exchange this afternoon and found out there was a 20 percent sale going on. You didn't have to tell me twice, and I left with seven great albums, five of which are pictured above.

Here are the pickups:

• Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass -- Going Places
• Frank Sinatra -- Strangers in the Night
• Ella Fitzgerald and the Tommy Flanagan Trio -- Live, Montreux '77
• Kiss -- Alive (!!)
• Talking Heads -- Speaking In Tongues
• Black Giants -- Compilations of jazz featuring Armstrong, Ellington, Davis, Monk, Gillepsie and more.
• Ella Fitzgerald -- Newport Jazz Festival, Live at Carnegie Hall '73

Now, I realize Kiss is way out of place on that list. But, I used to have Alive on TAPE when I was younger, and as I was looking over the sleeve and the full-color photo book that came with the record I knew I was going to buy it that very moment. Who could pass that up, honestly?

Anyway, once again, CD/Game Exchange pays off. It'll be too bad when it's no longer a short bike ride away. But, I plan to keep talking about how great it is here at least until I leave -- truth be told, I almost bought a store T-shirt today, but opted to buy more records instead of the shirt. It was the best choice, I imagine.

Hopefully sometime this week I'll have a great, thoughtful opus on D.C. record stores before I leave -- but, honestly, I report and write for a living. This blog, the more work I put into the writing and so on seems more and more like work every day. To that end, it might not be so great, or thoughtful, this opus I'm talking about. But, I hope to have something. Until then, I'll be listening to some great jazz, big band and 70s-80s glam rock/new wave to pass the time. Sounds good to me.

Janelle Monae Revisited: Or how I learned to stop worrying and love the style

If you've heard the name Janelle Monae, chances are you've seen this video, heard this song, or both. My first listen came via the video, and I liked what I heard. But what I didn't get was how this song -- and the entire album it was released on 'The Archandroid" for that matter -- immediately shot to the top of 'best-of' lists for 2010 and received lavish praise from a lot of people I tend to go to for music criticism. It's been called the best album of the year, and others have called it the best album in the past few years. Talk about praise.

Still, I didn't get it. I love Big Boi, who's featured in 'Tightrope' and the song was nice. But it's really outside the kind music I generally find myself listening to. R&B isn't something I tend to listen to, even 'good' R&B, as it were, as I've heard this record described. I gave part of the album a quick listen -- OK, I more had it playing in the background while I did other stuff. Eh, I thought. It's good, but is it that good? I didn't think so.

That has since changed.

Driving back from New York last night, I was listening to an 'All Songs Considered' podcast as they detailed the best albums of 2010 so far. Naturally, this was on the list, and both hosts continued the praise for this record. Now, I don't know if they chose this particular song I posted before knowing it might change the minds of holdouts like myself. But it definitely worked. The song is 'Come Alive (The War of the Roses)' and it is phenomenal. Between the cool, jumping bass line, catchy drums and guitar riffs -- not to mention Monae's voice -- it's a great product.

As I've mentioned on this blog, I try to refrain from music criticism and just say what I like and try to explain why. But this song struck me as the kind of song Gwen Stefani wishes she would've recorded before she became a 'Hollaback Girl' who only worked with hand-clappers and drum machines and wrote songs like 'Hella Good' even as her music became less so. Really, Come Alive is a great song, and it caused me to revisit the whole record. I'm not convinced it's the best album of the year -- certainly not the best of the last few years -- but it is damn good. And that's Janelle Monae Revisited: Or how I learned to stop worrying and love the style.

You Tell Me (vinyl white whale edition)

I've referenced a few times that, for the most part, I feel as though I have a lot of the albums that are among my favorite of all time -- the non-obscure ones I set out to find on vinyl in the first place when I got the record player.

I'm thinking of Blonde on Blonde, Velvet Underground & Nico, Led Zeppelins, and so on. Now don't get my wrong, as I've documented on this very blog, I've come across some very surprising albums that I bought on a whim or because I liked the artist but hadn't heard a particular record. I've grown to love many of these, and I've already really enjoyed picking up new releases on vinyl right off the bat. The latest Black Keys -- a group I'm convinced are meant to be heard on wax -- was great in this regard, as was picking up Merriweather Post Pavilion (finally) on vinyl.

Given all that, and the fact that I can still go into most any record store and, if money was no object, find a whole bunch of records I'd like to buy, I'm asking for help. I'm looking, essentially, for a new white whale or two. There aren't many of my favorite albums of all time that I don't have on vinyl anymore. So, dear readers, you tell me: Tell me what is or was your white whale, or your favorite record or two that you own, or one you spent a really, really long time looking for.

The best submissions will get a prize, most likely my enduring respect and admiration.

Diggin' now... David Byrne (h/t Brian Eno)

OK, first, yes these two songs are from the David Byrne AND Brian Eno album, 'My Life in the Bush of Ghosts', so maybe the title of this post should be 'Diggin' now... David Byrne and Brian Eno.' But it's not, because it's mostly about Byrne. So, moving on.

I've been slowly getting into David Byrne. I've loved the Talking Heads for a while, but I always thought I should dig into the Byrne catalog. After I saw this talk (embedded below) he gave on how architecture -- from CBGB to opera houses -- influence how one creates music, I set out.

The problem is, it's not particularly easy, mostly because the guy was -- and continues to be, to a lesser extent -- prolific. Byrne has released eight studio albums, 12 soundtracks, four live albums, 14 singles and one remix album. The first question I had to tackle was, where do you start? The next problem was the fact that near the end of his Talking Heads days and since, Byrne has done a lot in the realm of experimental music. He's cut clear across, rock and roll, new wave, experimental pop, so-called rock operas and even, as some people call it although I hate the term, art rock.

What that means is it takes a bit more time to get into some of this stuff, especially a record like My Life in the Bush of Ghosts, which I'll talk more about in the next paragraph. It's not all 100 percent easily accesible, and he works in a lot of nontraditional song forms, uses heavy sampling and few vocals at times and just generally creates music that would cause some to wonder what they're listening to.

But I like that stuff. So, I started with My Life in the Bush of Ghosts, an album that, believe it or not, was released in 1981 (!). Most every voice on the album is a sample, and the thing was put together with analog technology, not pieced together digitally like a lot of people with an Internet connection and a laptop can do these days. On top of that, according to liner notes, they'd do things like use a normal drum set, but instead use a cardboard box for the bass drum, or a frying pan for the snare.

What's crazy, though, is how great it sounds. The music flows, it's put together well and you'd never know it was made in a time before most people could really even fathom what a computer could do. Making use of all the samples -- which I've read were synchronized with the instruments through trial and error -- and having it sound so great is even more impressive.

This is one Byrne album I keep going back to. The songs above are the first and third tracks on the album, respectively, titled 'America is Waiting' and 'Regiment'. Check them out, and then check out the whole record. And check out that speech (it's only 20 minutes) too.

On Baltimore's Own Guru Records

I was two sips into an incredibly strong and pungent bloody mary during lunch at Bertha's in Baltimore's Fells Point neighborhood when Emma pointed out a sign on the sidewalk: Own Guru Records. What luck, I thought. Here, we chose to come to Baltimore for a belated birthday adventure, and we pick a lunch spot right next door to some random record store.

As we sat there, I mentioned to Emma that it seems like there sure are a lot of people stopping and gawking at this store. I pictured some ridiculous selection of records in the window, or perhaps any number of other attention-seeking gestures independent shops are wont to employ.

We finished our lunch and head outside. Upon first glance, I saw what intrigued everyone: Above you'll see the front door of Own Guru Records. Yes, it's that little bit in the middle, a skinny black gate that leads to a similarly skinny, wooden-floored hallway past a few apartments and into a backyard. This concerned me. To gain entry, one must ring a buzzer, and an employee comes and unlocks the gate and lets you in. Once you enter, the gate is immediately locked behind you. I remember, only half-jokingly, asking Emma if we were about to be kidnapped or something. The thought did cross my mind.

Eventually, the strange little hallway and backyard environment gave way to what appeared to be a shed. Indeed, it was a shed. A shed full of records, with the owner repeatedly droning, "All records 15 percent off, books 25." There's maybe 10-square-feet of walking space in the entire place. I had to move out of the way for people coming and going multiple times. But it wasn't that big of deal, especially when you remember that that was the case because they had so many records there.

But it took me a solid five minutes to gain my bearings. I still wasn't sure where I was exactly. I felt like there must be something illegal going on, given the strange practices of this business (multiple times, the owner asked newly-entered customers if they locked the door behind them, and a number of them were literally escorted by another employee to the store's other location. I didn't visit). It was all very strange.

Eventually, though, I started looking through the crates and crates of records. Emma immediately found a copy of Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band. It'd been on her list of must-find records for some time. I made my way around the shop, and found a host of great records including The Jimi Hendrix Experience's first effort, Are You Experienced?, which was the only studio Hendrix album I didn't have before today. I also found a copy of Thriller. Those two finds alone would've been exciting enough. But no, there was a bunch more (check out the link.)

But aside from today's success, the store just has a lot of character. It only has vinyl, which I greatly appreciate. As strange as my first five minutes of interaction with it was, the rest of it more than made up for it. I struck up conversation with the man behind the counter. The records were solid. It was a great all-around experience. What more could you ask for?

Diggin' now... Spearhead 'Hole in the Bucket'

Listening to the Sound Opinions podcast this afternoon, I was introduced to an old Michael Franti and Spearhead song from 1994 (!) off their Home album. Now, I've had a moderate listening relationship with these guys, since their release last year and diving back into their older catalogue.

But this song is... to borrow a phrase... the truth. Take a listen.

Here's the first verse. Greatness:

I work 9 to 5 but it starts in the P.M.
and I love the sunrise so I step out in the A.M.
the street is black and shiny from the early
nightly rainin'
the glory of the light it brings evaporation
morning's fresh oxygen cleanest
I take a deep hit help my mind stay the greenest
I'm already wake so I'm not drinkin' coffee
don't wanna cigarrette 'cause it's a form of slavery
walk into the store 'cause I need a few items
the sun heats the blood like a hit of vitamins
needa buy some food and some 'poo for my dreads
can't remember why but I need a spool of thread
Man with dirty dreads, steps around the comer
he asks me for a dime, a nickel or a quarter
I don't have any change so I'm steppin' along
and as I'm walkin' past he sings to me a song

Hi. I'm Jake, and I'm a vinyl addict. (Hi Jake)

"Just when I thought I was out... they pull me back in."

So, it's not Godfather-worthy, mafioso stuff here, but I had been taking a break from buying records at the pace I had been since I had been spending quite a bit of money and Record Store Day drained me of valuable cash reserves.

Well, that lasted until Friday, when I picked up the new Black Keys album 'Brothers.' Then, today, since Emma's in Florida, I figured I'd go check out CD/Game Exchange in Silver Spring. I hadn't been there in a while. Kinda missed it.

But I wasn't sure I was going to buy anything. That was, of course, until I got inside. Right away I found a copy of The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour in great shape, complete with 24-page color booklet and for $8. Wasn't going to pass that up.

Then nothing else really caught my eye. There were a few things, here and there, but nothing I felt I had to get right then and there. That was, of course, until some guy came in with a stack of vinyl he was selling to the store that I overheard Sam (manager) describe as "some great stuff." As I made my way to the counter, I found a stack of records that weren't even priced yet.

Ultimately, I ended up with Jimi Hendrix Electric Ladyland (complete with the controversial and rare UK cover art featuring 19 nude women which is described here) in mint -- and I mean mint -- condition. That was $16, but totally worth it. Then I found The Specials' self-titled first album in great shape for $10. (Sam also mentioned that The Specials are from his hometown in the UK and used to hang out by his grandma's house, but at 12 years old he was too shy to say anything.) Great pickups.

So, what started as a trip just to stop by ended with three great finds at a good price. And that's really what's great about CD/Game Exchange. I've been to too many places where they stock a lot of new vinyl, or there's so much that it's overwhelming and there's really not that joy in finding something you didn't expect. But a few times in a row now, I've gone into CD/Game Exchange and found nothing but greatness. I recommend you try it out if you're around.

ALSO: Apparently the Takoma location has vinyl marked down and, perhaps, a bigger selection that Silver Spring. I haven't been there, but probably will make a point to check it out soon.

Diggin' now... Sleigh Bells (Treats)

I don't remember where I heard about this ridiculously hyped band first, but I first listened on NPR Music's excellent First Listen feature, which you can check out here. Aside from recommending this feature, I wholly recommend you take 32 minutes of your day and listen to this album. One commenter labeled it audio cocaine. Don't know about that, but they're not wrong, per se. It's got an M.I.A.-ish sound, which makes some sense considering this duo is, indeed, signed to her N.E.E.T label.

Either way, this is a great album after a few times through. But I realize they're also kind of a buzz band, and will likely spawn the inevitable "greatest band or affront to people who can hear everywhere?" debate that so often takes place in this situation.
My two cents is this: I heard this album, and I really liked it. It seems as though a number of other people like it as well. That's fine. But is it going to redefine music for decades to come and be a landmark for everything that's ever been heard ever ever? Probably not. But it's really good! So just take a listen. Sometimes these releases get overhyped and then, inevitably, there's another faction of listeners who feel like they've got to hate it because it's been overhyped and it's not that good.

Well, if you ask me (which you probably didn't) it's good. It's damn good. Listen to it.

Diggin' now... Theophilus London

Latest new music I've been listing to a lot lately is right here: Theophilus London. Above is "A Stranger's Heart" off his new 'I Want You' mixtape. Listen to the rest via YouTube here.

I don't know much else about London. He's got a blog here. And he has a Twitter account here. He's also got another mixtape called 'This Charming Mixtape,' and it is, indeed, charming in its own way. He's got a new style, incorporating a lot of different sounds and styles into him music -- I'm sure part of that is the sample-heavy, repurposed beats nature of mixtapes. Still, two mixtapes in, I'm diggin' the soul, R&B, hip hop sounds. An example of the weird cross-genre working? He covers Marvin Gaye and samples Vampire Weekend. Yeah. Check it out.

On record fairs... and D.C.'s Black Cat says next one here is May 23 (!!)

Just days (DAYS) after Record Store Day comes word that the Black Cat in Washington, D.C. is going to be hosting the city's next record fair May 23rd, just a little over a month away. Looking ahead to this, rather than back at Record Store Day (just for a moment) got my thinking about record fairs in general.

I've only been to one proper record fair, and that was earlier this year in D.C. but I had always heard about them and wanted to check them out. Between reading stuff like this story from Montreal about people finding super-rare and super-expensive records at various places and the stories you always hear about a unassuming trip somewhere only to find something so amazing you can hardly believe it, I decided I had to check these things out.

So, in mid-February, we headed to the D.C. record fair. It was the first weekend after the Washington area got hammered with a week's worth of blizzard conditions, so just being out of the house and on the move somewhere was worth it. We got downtown to the Black Cat, a club in the area, and made it inside. What I saw was a sight was a sight to be seen -- to use a, come to think of it, incredibly redundant, meaningless and useless cliche. It was crazy.

There were more records than I had ever seen in one place. Ever. There were dealers stationed along every wall, packed in the middle of the dance floor, people waiting in lines three, four, five deep just to get to certain table so they could begin to look at the offerings. On the stage, there were DJs doing sets throughout. When I first got inside, Geologist from Animal Collective was on the stage. Not a bad start.

But it wasn't all good. For one, it was far too crowded for me. Waiting in line just to wait in line just to be able to look through records isn't my idea of a good time. Also, being cramped next to other people and having a line of people breathing down your neck when you finally do get to look through the records isn't any fun either. It limited the kind of casual perusing I enjoy, and instead meant you had to be very deliberate about it. Also, on a less-important, but no inconsequential note, it was too dark. I could hardly see what I was looking at and a number of people were using cell phones just so they could see.

Still, these problems aside, a room full of records -- with a full-service bar -- and a gathering of vinyl heads couldn't be all bad. And we landed some great finds: Duke Ellington and John Coltrane album, The Who's 'Tommy,' Pink Floyd's 'The Wall,' The Ramones self-titled first issue and The Doors' 'Strange Days,' all in decent shape and not too expensive. I call that a reasonable success.

So I'd give the experience a B+. I found some great records, had a decent time and didn't spend too much money. I found all of those records between two of the vendors, so who knows what I might have found if I was able to freely look around without having wait in long lines to do so. But that probably would've extracted too much money from my pocket anyway. So, for what it was, my first record fair was a worthwhile experience. Looking forward to the next one.

UPDATE: Record Store Day - Flaming Lips Dark Side of the Moon CLEAR VINYL - New info?

UPDATED 1:15 p.m.: Matt, in the comments, points out he also got a clear vinyl in the US, but his had a sticker saying "custom clear vinyl." Upon further review, so did mine. I haven't seen any "seafoam green" stickers, although Matt says he has. It could be that "custom clear" could apply to the clear AND green vinyl, since they're both transparent. But it certainly seems that, with these stickers, either that's the case or the seafoam/clear distinction was on purpose for one reason or another.

Via a comment on the Flaming Lips' own blog, someone claimed to have ALSO gotten a clear copy of this Flaming Lips Record Store Day Dark Side of the Moon release. As did someone commenting on my original post. So, we know there are at least a handful out there, but I'd imagine there are more.

Here's a thread at the Flaming Lips site: There are a couple more who say they have clear copies. One person is pissed, although I'm not sure why. Another speculated maybe the "dye ran out." I don't think that's it. Finally, another quotes from a Facebook posting of an Ann Arbor, Mich. store: "Underground Sounds - Ann Arbor, Michigan I was told by Warner 10,000; 4,500 clear, 5,500 seafoam and that it sold so fast it will be a regular release in June."

Which brings me to the purpose of this post: Has anyone seen any totals or good, solid information on this? Some people already selling their copies on eBay claim that there are only 500 copies of the clear version in the world, but that doesn't fit for two reasons: One, some postings like this one claim the album has never been opened. Now, maybe this person has some kind of home Xray machine, but I doubt it. How would you know it's clear? That makes me doubt everything the person wrote. Two, at least according to the guy at Crooked Beat, stores were made aware of the 'mistake' the night before Record Store Day. So, if it was actually a mistake, I'd doubt there'd be an official count by the next day. But then again, maybe it wasn't a mistake at all and this is some kind of super-secret-special edition? Although if that was the case, I think there'd be some kind of information out on this already. I think this latter scenario is more selfish wishful thinking than anything else.

Anyway, I'm going to keep poking around for information. Just figured I'd put up a flare for any other information out there.

Here's the album, again: (Beautiful)

Record Store Day - CLEAR VINYL - Flaming Lips / Dark Side of the Moon surprise

I plan a full after-action report of this morning's Record Store Day festivities, but I just got back and started opening the records and found THIS in my Flaming Lips LP:

Apologies for the poor quality of the photo, but as you can see, the record is CLEAR. That's right. CLEAR. I heard from the manager at Crooked Beat that he got a call from the label last night saying there were some errors in the color during pressing, and apparently this is one of those errors. Originally, it was supposed to be sea foam green, but this is WAY better. Just a note on the photo, that's the cover of the album behind the clear -- again, CLEAR -- record.

Anyone else come across this?

'Going down to Yasgur's Farm, gonna join in a rock 'n roll band. Got to get back to the land & set my soul free'

So went the line on one of the classic songs - 'Woodstock' - on this album 'Deja Vu' from Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young... This 1970 classic is great because it brings together influences from all members, has some classic tracks -- 'Teach Your Children,' 'Woodstock,' '4+20,' 'Our House' -- and is like sonic bridge between the 1960s and 1970s, musically speaking. And that album cover!

I hadn't listened to this album in I don't know how long, but gave it a spin today and it got me thinking about how I ended up with it and its place in its own era. I found this gem in Uptown Minneapolis' own Cheapo Records... it was rated in 'Good' condition and was selling for $4.20 -- perfect price. What's great about my copy is it's in fine playing condition, but just beat up enough to have a little hiss/static throughout. Some of the audiophiles out there might cringe at that, but in this sense it makes the listening experience. The dirty sound of 'Woodstock' coming over the speakers grasps what was, of course, an incredibly dirty festival.

The static running through 'Almost Cut My Hair,' exemplifies the era. In flux, uncertain, loud, challenging. The scratchy, hissy sound completely matches the album cover and the subject matter. I mean, it looks like the old west, Crosby with what appears to be a rifle and that dog just sitting in the foreground of the photo. The lyrics on 'Our House' -- 'I'll light the fire while you place the flowers in the vase that you bought today' -- are just so simplistic, but carry some kind of vivid imagery. And that very simplicity is the contradiction of the time this album was made. Social upheaval coupled with a certainty self-identified righteousness among a a segment of the movement.

The album is better for it. I had this on CD (and, as such, MP3) before I landed the vinyl, but I haven't listened to it in either of those formats since I got this record. The music itself on this album is a relic to a very specific period of the past -- just think of how different 1968 was from, say, 1972, from music to politics to culture. It's a snapshot of the past, musically, and listening to it in all of its dirty, scratchy, vinyl glory is like a worthwhile adventure on the greatest time machine of all time.

Crate diggin' in the new world redux... In praise of CD/Game Exchange

Getting back to our more regularly scheduled blogging, it dawned on me today that I've neglected to praise Silver Spring, MD's own CD/Game Exchange enough in this blog. The story of how I came to realize this ends with me returning home after a day of work with the albums above from Stevie Wonder, The Beatles, Grateful Dead, Doobie Brothers, Lou Reed and Jimi Hendrix, but there's more to it than that.

Monday night, I saw on the store's Twitter account that it had gotten some new 70s rock vinyl in stock. I inquired, natch, and was told there was some 60s rock as well, including Beatles, Hendrix and Doors. Well, that peaked my interest. Unfortunately, I had to work the next day -- it's a give-and-take relationship, with work funding the collection while work gets in the way of the collecting. So Sam at the store made an offer: he'd hold back some of the new arrivals if I could come in some time that day before 8 p.m.. My response? Absolutely.

I eventually made it to the store after work, and there was a glorious stack of vinyl waiting there. And there were some great finds, some of which I bought (listed above) and more that I'm sure would've disappeared rather quickly if just thrown out there. While looking and buying the records, I got to talk with Sam there a bit. I mentioned how I was from Minneapolis, just once, when he'd been to First Ave. as a roadie. He added that since everything closed earlier, they later went to a "huge gay club" -- "they served beer, so it was good" -- which I assume was the city's (in)famous Gay 90s.

But it was nice experience, and first time I really got a sense for the people behind the counter, so to speak, even though I'd been to this shop a handful of times. The stores I frequented in Minneapolis were big, with a lot of employees and customers and I never really met anyone working there, and that's understandable. But this little shop right outside the District of Columbia has some great records there, especially if you follow its updates on Twitter and/or Facebook and get in on some of the early stuff.

It's especially impressive considering records aren't even what they specialize in -- by that I mean they sell all kinds of stuff. I heard someone ask if they sell Sega Dreamcast games today (yup, Dreamcast, man), and I'm fairly certain I've seen some Super Nintendo games/hardware around. There are also used CDs, tapes, skateboards, T-shirts, stickers, books... and it goes on.

Really, it's just a great place in my mind, and I always appreciate a store willing to let customers know what's in stock before you head over -- something that's especially unusual when it comes to used records, since stores aren't the best on keeping updated inventory. D.C.'s Crooked Beat Records is probably the best I've seen (and they ship!). Oh, and that store's Twitter page is here.

Anyway, as much as I enjoy an hour or two on a Saturday hanging out at record stores, it's great to hear from the store when some new stuff comes in and just swing by too. Being able to hear from the people who run it is an added -- and equal -- bonus, and I look forward to getting to know more about the store and the people. In the short-term, though, I'll be checking CD/Game Exchange's updates on new merchandise, and I'd recommend you do the same.

Found treasure -- Saturday Night Fever

A post on mad (!) discoveries. A friend of mine was over for an early St. Patrick's day party, with a few others. Given the occasion, and the fact that he's leaving the D.C. area, I insisted he choose the next album. Good man that he is, Keith Hovis chose the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack that I found in my parents' basement.

Now, I've put in this on before. I played it during a party with fellow interns in Indianapolis, but it was mostly for the first track, 'Stayin' Alive' by the Bee Gees, classic that it is. But, as it turns out, this soundtrack is a double LP of A-MAZING. I've never seen the movie, but song for song, I think this one of the greatest soundtracks I've ever heard. You've got 'Stayin' Alive' as the first track and it ends with The Trammps' 'Disco Inferno.' What's in between is essentially a time capsule of the Saturday Night Fever era. In this case, that's a good thing!

Then I got to thinking: I would have never found the greatness that is this soundtrack without the original suggestion from on Keith. But once it was spinning, we were loving it. Between the great music, random dance breakouts -- mostly from Keith -- and the surprise of finding I'd had this great album all along, it was a good time. And it's a testament to the social element of this whole vinyl deal. Had this been a laptop or MP3 player, we would've played 'Saturday Night Fever' and left it at that. Or certainly somewhere between track one and track 17 it would've been changed. But because records force you to appreciate the whole album, well, there we were. A group of recent college grads, in the year 2010, listening to the Saturday Night Fever Soundtrack at a St. Pat's party.

That's what it's all about.

Diggin' now... Tickley Feather

I just found out the name/artist of a great track I heard during a Geologist set at this past DC record fair. Above is Tickley Feather's "Trashy Boys." And I think it an amazing track. The foreboding musical back drop, the catchy drums, and those vocals. Makes for some great music.

Anyway, that's all. Thought I'd share, because I'm glad I found this track, and look forward to picking up the album. This is just the second release from Tickley Feather, and I haven't heard all that much, but I'm loving this track, and expect to feel the same about the rest. Hope you like it as well.

Also: after my Atmosphere post and this one, I'm thinking this will be a regular feature, named "Diggin' now.." or something else. But I'll probably just highlight some new stuff of the moment.