I'll be sure not to sing your praise too loud

Dear Friends,

1.

Things I learned in the woods:

Eagles have a large wing span. (Okay, I already knew that but up close and personal is a little different.)

Well water can be malodorous.

That in itself is not enough to stop you showering in it when you are dirty.

If you "hike" in sneakers, carrying an umbrella, more experienced types will laugh at you as they pass.

Hikers will also ALWAYS greet you. Which is interesting if you've been entertaining thoughts that they are serial killers on the stalk.

Brown bears steer clear of well traveled logging roads (at least that is what I will continue to hope.)

Certain songs are made for nightime, curving road driving with dark tree silhouettes reaching overhead and a loved one's reassuring hand on your knee.

One such song is They built you up too fast (yousendit download) by Takka Takka from their album, We feel safer at night.

A sotto voce ditty about great expectations; not overly serious, just matter of fact. It's probably the punctuation of syncopated handclaps and la la las sprinkled throughout that keeps it so light. The song is a promise, a quiet one and something about the measured quietness makes you think that the narrator is unsure they can keep their vow. How can they when odds say they will fail? So they turn it into a nursery rhyme of sorts. One that says, "Don't blame me if I can't keep it...I'll try though." and secretly hopes that through repetition, they can make it so.

Of course when I listen to it, none of this comes in to play. Especially on the country roads with the signs saying 'Fawn crossing.' I just hear the quiet spaces in between and murmur the refrain under my breath*.

Takka Takka play tonight as part of an Earfarm Halloween showcase at Union Hall. Check it.

2.

CMJ here we come!

Wednesday, November 1st. Knitting Factory Old Office. Serious Business Records Famiglia!

This is gonna be good freakin' times so if you are free, come on out! Conversely, if you hadn't planned to come, have a CMJ pass and are in the building, feel free to wander our way.

Love, D

* Gabriel Takka has just informed me the song is about Richard Serra. Uh...really? (Consults cd booklet lyric sheet.) Tomorrow I will write about how Young Folks by Peter Bjorn and John is about fear of discos and my winning interpretive streak shall continue!

calling us back to war

dear friends,

1. going to union hall in park slope tonight to catch those nice takka takka gents debut their cd, we feel safer at night. I first wrote about the song that the album takes its name from here.

if you are free, you should tag along. if not, go to their website & buy it!

2. step up was a glorious piece of velveeta. go here to read mr. fluxblog's take on what it was like.

I recommend you throw a step up party in your home sometime in the future*. maybe you too, can be part of the rhythm nation.

3. so far, me & jeff k are the only people signed on for the soft communication mix exchange, round deux. c'mon, I know you be dorkin'. take part.

love, d

* be sure to do the step up drinking game. drink every time: a dance outfit is needlessly skimpy, no one has sex when obviously they should, there's a giant electric slide revamp taking place, rachel griffiths aka brenda fisher wanders in clearly needing to pay some bills & doing a mystery accent that turns "3 o'clock" into "3 o'claaaw", some dude proves that just 'cause he likes to dance, don't mean they're wearing no tights, a'ight?, etc. etc. really, it's a goldmine of opportunity.

I see you're under my diamond

dear friends,

1. firstly, an enormous congratulations to gabriel from BYP #2 alumns & gentlemen extrordinaire, takka takka. not only is this stellar fella going out on tour with cyhsy & soft communication favorites architecture in helsinki BUT he's also getting married this saturday*! I hope him & his beautiful bride-to-be have a perfect brooklyn day out in the blue & green!

2. secondly, matt earfarm posted up his BYP #5 re-cap & also our playlist. looking over selections, I noticed two things. we are shameless, shameless panderers of the highest order. I mean just look at the crazy dance party usa turn it took towards the end. & also (& this totally goes against the first point) we think the fall is so nice, we played them twice. go figure.

BYP #5 playlist (that's me in the bold)

"me plus one" - annie
this was actually not my intended start song but soundmaster bob needed to check the levels & I hit the first song on the list. a is for annie.

"lloyd, I'm ready to be heartbroken" - camera obscura

"melo do vitiligo" - bonde do role
I read on fluxblog** that marina from bonde do role took a bad fall at pitchfork but new pictures show that she is out & about, still performing, rocking a sling. she is a true playah.

"the city never sleeps" - the fall

"punker plus" - le tigre

"the continuing story of bungalow bill" - deerhoof

"jackson" - lee hazelwood & nancy sinatra
everybody knows I loves me some lee & nancy. I prefer this version of jackson to the carter/cash original (HORRORS!) because I buy that hazelwood is the most dissolute faux-country cad ever with his snarky "I doubt its." he's clearly leaving nancy by the side of the road. also, I adore those fade-out whispered "jackson"s. you pavement fans out there might notice the resemblance to the repeated "texas" bit at the end of texas never whispers. nice, eh?

"jackson" - brakes

"let down" - toots & the maytals
because matt had to play me like that & volley with that jackson cover, I had to counter with one of the most interesting covers I've heard of late, namely this version of radiohead's let down. it sounds like it wouldn't work but it does, especially the melodica intro. & while I wish toots had attempted that amazing split vocal thing at the end that yorke does where his "you know where you are" gets higher & higher, it's difficult to quibble when the man sings this tune with a conviction that belies the sunny reggae beat.

"wolf at the door" - radiohead

"911 is a joke" - public enemy
thom yorke once said this was a very sexy song. the natural response to wolf at the door, no?

"the bush" - special ed

"hot boyz" - dear nora & casiotone for the painfully alone
(NB: I had wanted to follow matt's selection with the seed by the roots & cody chesnutt. sadly I didn't have it. le sigh.)

when I first heard this version of missy's hot boyz I was dubious. because I couldn't tell if these whiteys actually liked the song or whether they were taking the piss. at some point or another, I decided to take them & their homage seriously. as seriously as that hard beat that punctuates the slack.

"20L07" - john & jehn

---

"pole position" - folk implosion

"rollin' danny" - the fall
because I love the fuckin' fall.

"crocodiles" - echo & the bunnymen

"99 problems" - danger mouse/jay z
full disclosure: when I first heard this version I was slightly underwhelmed. I had expected something way more terrifying in its awesomeness, since here are two incredibly visceral songs making out right in front of you like they don't care - it should freak you out or turn you on or BOTH. instead I was left with a merely a "huh." that being said, in a club, in the dark, with a drink, this hits the spot.

"standing in the shower thinking" - jane's addiction

"cut-out witch" - guided by voices
gvb! gvb! gvb!

"beetlebum" - blur

---

"tame" - the pixies
an easy one I know, but whenever this plays people hit the bar with a vengeance, in order to have something to hoist in the air during the final screams, I suppose.

"really bad weekend" - art brut

"two guys (for every girl)" - peaches
listening to eddie argos moan about his life, I started to imagine the kind of song he would write if he were set up on a date with peaches that went disastrously & hilariously wrong. coming soon to a theater near you!

"the journey" - fatboy slim

"see emily play" - pink floyd
had to throw one in for syd. & the monkey, who was patiently perched next to the dj booth all night.

"worked up so sexual" - the faint

"field day for sundays" - wire
angry that matt played the faint (I had desperate guys all cued up) I retaliated with an extremely short (but perfect) song. color me cruel.

"what's in it for me?" - brakes

"cope" - the futureheads

---

"plastic passion" - the cure

"handsome devil" - the smiths
george jezel was wearing a hatful of hollow t-shirt. this one was for him.

"trash" - new york dolls (very clever, matt)

"baby c'mon" - stephen malkmus
the guitar playing on this song is like being extremely drunk in good & equally inebriated company. no one's gonna rat you out the next day for playing the solo on a broom because they were accompanying you on table, I mean drums.

"astronomy domine" - pink floyd (request)

"wounded world" - mission of burma
I saw burma cover astronomy domine at irving plaza a few years ago. the monkey was mouthing along about oberon & titania & I thought, ah. must be floyd.

"scream team" - deerhoof

---

"let's go crazy" - prince
an old request from marts la reina. sadly, I think she missed it...(sob)

"into the groove" - madonna

"groove is in the heart" - deee-lite
how right you are lady miss kier.

"sexy back" - justin timberlake

"work it" - missy elliott
speaking of sexy back, missy wants you to keep your eye on her badunkadunkdunk.

"good enough for grandad" - squirrel nut zippers

"humpty dance" - digital underground
because everyone knows the words to this.

"so what'chu want?" - beastie boys

"talk to me, dance with me" - hot hot heat

"wanna be startin' somethin'" - michael jackson (matt faded out before the unfortunate yee-haw! moment. smart man.)

"the last time" - gnarls barkley (request)
a young lady requested gnarls. we aim to please.

"monday morning" - pulp

"love me or hate me" - lady sovereign (request)
phil byp requested some lady sovereign. I relate to this tale of midgetry.

"don't you want me" - human league

***

our apologies to the lady who requested muse & new kids on the block. we both almost had either on our playlists. yeah, that sentence makes some kind of sense.

also, my apologies for not playing cansei de ser sexy. I meant to play them at the end but ran out of time. if they ever let me do this again, I'm on it.

3. full circle? I think so! to hear both dj earfarm & takka takka rock the haus, be sure to attend crackers united presents friction on september 14th at sin-é. I will be there fo' sho'.

love, d

* last I checked, the first dance song had not been decided. my own personal choice would always be I wanna destroy you by the soft boys. I realize that not everyone shares my sense of humor so feel free to leave more appropriate wedding song selections in the comments.

** speaking of fluxblog, tomorrow is matthew perpetua's birthday so if you've ever snorted coffee through your nose after reading his entries (current favorite: "seriously, if you can't immediately tap into the raw, specific emotions of "Rusted Gun of Milan," "Emily Kane," and "Good Weekend," then perhaps we should just consider that you may be an unfeeling turbodouche") or downloaded an mp3 on his site, then run off & bought the cd, make your way over to fluxblog tomorrow & say thank you kind sir & happy birthday.

band to congratulate & go see live: takka takka

dj to do the wop next to while they play the beasties: dj earfam

Self-made millionaires

...Or my longest post EVER

Dear friends,

1. Where I self-medicate

There's a serious insect situation in my house. Argh! To make myself feel better, I would like to post this video. Because poppy psychedelia pleases me.



2. Where I babble and truncate

Tuesday night's Beg Yr Pardon party, the semiconcious recap, in mini-bite form:

- Get to the venue early. Bob the soundman doesn't know who I am, stares at me blankly when I say "Hey!" When he doesn't reply, I do that high school move of pretending I hadn't said anything and set about unloading my Tina-given bag of stuff.

- The uber-sadness continues when I realize that I have no idea what to do with the streamers and I can't blow up a balloon to save my life. Sigh. Clearly, I didn't have a childhood.

- Joe from Planes For Spaces shows up, along with the ladies of Telenovela Star. Talking to bands. I can do that. I think.

- Fast forwarding to show time, Telenovela Star are on and they are wailing. I however, am at the door. I run downstairs to hear one song, watch Hanna T-Star coo and then yell her gorgeous red-haired head off through A Plum. When Maggie T-Star joins her on the vocals at the end I feel a perceptible crowd shimmer of "oooo" then run back upstairs to take more money. I try to smile at the arrivals but I still manage to make people uneasy. It must be my teeth.

- Gabe from Takka Takka catches me doing an absurd one foot by cashbox, one foot to bar move and politely offers to go order for me. I later discover, after meeting the other half of Takka Takka, that they are quite possibly the nicest NYC band ever. Which means they might have to jello wrestle El Jezel for the title. That would be awesome.

- Catch some of Planes For Spaces, they wail and stomp through their desert doomscapes with confidence.

- Run upstairs, meet Higgins, it's like meeting Santa. 'Cept more psychedelic.

- Go outside to smoke furiously, did not tell Mr. Earfarm that Mrs. Earfarm is the best smelling lady in the L.E.S. because that would sound wicked creepy*.

- Run downstairs, see Takka Takka rip it up. Love the organ intro to We Feel Safer At Night. A few songs later, Gabe, clearly not content to just be a singer, keyboardist and guitarist, unleashes the harmonica! Yay!

- Free beer! Uh...free CAFFEINATED beer. Uh oh!

- Higgins. Are. The. (High pitched) shiiiiizzzz. The solo in Drop Off was so good and as much as I like the recorded version, it didn't have that winding, perfectly measured slice of guitar goodness or for that matter, the effect of Brian Higgins' immaculately tasteful yet powerful drumming right in yo' face. Afterwards, through most of the set, I thought stupidly over and over, I LOVE guitarmony so much. It's true. that's how J got me to like Queen. When two guitars start harmonizing with each other, my head swims in pleasure. I know, I know. There ain't no way to hide the goofy.

- Go here for some photos, go here for coherence

3. Where I pimp da music and next show

Unsacred Hearts drummer and SB Big Cheese Travis H aka DJ Business will be kindly filling in for Jenny P aka DJ J-Pi ** as my tag team dj partner*** on the later part of the night on Thursday, June 29 aka the next Beg Yr Pardon at Club Midway (night change! venue change!) I will play the dance favorites and he will play the quality sounds that make those that subscribe to British music magazines go "Aaah yeah" Yes, I'm one of those too. Be sure to get there early to hear the fabulous Obsessive Compulsive AKA DJs Justin and Dot from the Crackers United crew. Also, bands! More on those next week.

Love, D

* Instead, I decided to tell them that on Thursday. I thought it might be less creepy post-pony.

** She has scored herself a fancypants job on the beach. congratulations Jenny P.!

*** I have no DJ name yet, though J's joking (I hope) suggestion of DJ Beeyotch is being seriously considered.