Die Neue Deutsche Welle

   I decided to celebrate Memorial Day in my own special way today.   That is, by scouring the cheap bins of local flea markets for some new records.    My only purchase today was this gem:

 

   "Die Neue Deutsche Welle Is Da Da Da" (The New German Wave is Da Da Da) caught my eye with its beautiful German flag sleeve.   I recognized a few artists listed, such as Yello of "Oh Yeah!" and Ferris Bueller's Day Off fame.   First listen revealed some great tracks such as "Scherbenlilli" by Claudia Robot and "Taxi" by Jawoll.   The internet has surprising little information about most of these groups.   I'm curious to learn more about Claudia Robot, although from I can it seems she(?) only released one single.    There is some really excellent material here for the lovers of quirky new-wave that brings to mind equals parts Flying Lizards and Lene Lovich.   

Breaking The Law

  I am not a Judas Priest fan, but I love this song.
I love it even more after watching the video yesterday morning, and then feeling the need to jump into storefronts and yell "breakin' the law, breakin' the law" for the rest of the day.





  More importantly, whenever I even think about this song, I flashback to this great moment in television history.

You Know I'm No Good (Volume 1)

  There has been a great deal of lazy writing about the career and life of Amy Winehouse since her death in July of last year.   These articles generally took one of two easy ways out; highlighting either her troubled personal life, or her sure-to-be-legendary status as a musician following her demise.   I'm not here to do either of those things.   Amy Winehouse was and is not in the discussing for greatest vocalists of all time.   What she did accomplish, however, is to create one fantastic record (2006's "Back to Black"), a throwback to sounds of the past when the music industry was dominated by dancefloor electronic pop, while managing to fuse in just enough of those modern touches to appeal to the younger set and top the charts in the United Kingdom and hit #2 here in the states.

   The "You Know I'm No Good" will hopefully become a running series.   After all, there is certainly no shortage of musical icons who led troubled lives.   The focus is intended to be on the music and the high points of the featured artists.   Enough has been already about the low points.

To Grandmother's House We Go

 Arriving at my grandparent's house this morning, I immediately noticed something amiss.   Strewn across the living room in dozens of piles and several boxes was a time capsule of albums and singles from the 1960's and 70's.   Having already scavenged their attic for any records of listenability several years ago (there wasn't), I was quite shocked by this development, and was informed by my grandfather that his collection had been passed to my uncle, undoubtedly in one of their endless "space saving" measures.   After some glad-handing and negotiating I was able to cherry pick pretty much whatever I wanted.    I left most of the Beatles, Stones, and Elvis wax to my uncle, who is looking to make a profit off this arrangement, and stuck to items for my personal collection.   To my surprise, I came across some excellent singles by favorites Nancy Sinatra, The Shangri-La's, and ? and the Mysterians, as well as a copy of T. Rex "Electric Warrior" and "Kinda Kinks" by those Davies boys.   Shockingly, I found a copy of the first Emmit Rhodes LP, which I had just recently obtained after a few years of searching to complete my collection.   If only I had known my grandparents had been hiding a copy in their spare room since 1970.

Death to the Pixies?

 We've all heard the horror stories of band reunions.   99% of them are shameless cash grabs, and the last few years of touring by the formerly fearsome foursome of underground rock PIXIES are absolutely no different.   The band reconvened in 2004 to much acclaim and many sold out shows, and produced a new single and waves of rumors regarding a new album in the making.   Sadly, instead of being revitalized and providing their incredibly loyal fanbase with their first new record since 1991's Trompe le Monde, Black Francis and company have done absolutely nothing but tour and tour again, the most ludicrous of all being the Doolittle 20th anniversary tour, which has somehow turned into a three year excursion.   I suppose it's the 23rd anniversary tour now.
   I don't mean to put the band down as musicians, and I still love all the albums as dearly as I did before the reunion.   The real bone I have to pick is that the band has steered clear of the working-class venues where they made their living in the 80's and 90's, and are now preparing for a tour of state theatres in places like Easton, Pennsylvania, charging upwards of $80 per ticket.   I expect the Elton John's of the world to charge such exorbitant prices, but from the real saviors of rock and roll in the post-hair metal era (sorry Kurt Cobain, the PIXIES were doing it first) it seems like a slap in the face.