Thursday Random Eight (11/26/2008)

Anticipating nothing being random on Thanksgiving, I'm once again doing the Thursday Random Eight on Wednesday. As always, the first eight songs of the morning after setting the iPod to shuffle play.

Stewart Copeland - Gong Rock: Another song from The Rhythmatist that I mentioned a few weeks ago; very upbeat and entertaining.

Robyn Hitchcock - Queen Elvis II: The solo-electric version of Robyn's semi-famous song from the fantastic Eye release. For as much as I like Robyn Hitchcock's music, there is no doubt these days that he works without much of a filter and sometimes releases music that, frankly, could be better. Eye, however, is really a fantastic package of music from beginning to end, and closing it with a reprise of this song is very fitting.

Archers of Loaf - Strangled By the Stereo Wire: The opening song to All The Nation's Airports; a good opening but needs to be followed by the next couple tracks on the recording to be appreciated.

Butthole Surfers - I Saw an X-Ray of a Girl Passing Gas: I'm pretty sure this is technologically impossible.

Michael Petak - Mr. Smile: I was introduced to Petak's music when his band opened for a Love Spit Love show in Baltimore years ago. Pretty Little Lonely was his only solo release (his band, Carnival Art, had two releases that I am aware of); it is a fine collection of dismal songs with a certain similarity to the band Low Pop Suicide.

Poster Children - Idiot Show: Again in this post I'll say that Tool of the Man is another recording that is just a fantastic package from beginning to end. Idiot Show is one of the slower tracks, but still driven with heavy guitars and haunting vocals.

Boomtown Rats - Dave: The reissue of In The Long Grass a few years ago allowed a bonus track of Dave to be included, the (at the time of release) controversial single that was ultimately changed in title and lyrics to "Rain." The controversy was regarding the lyrical content involving Dave dying from AIDS which apparently wasn't appropriate for release on a pop record. A song about a man dying from, at the time, a vicious yet misunderstood disease changed to a song about the weather. History does have a way of indicating how f*cked up we as people can be sometimes.

Nico - No One is There: These days, people criticize Nico for all sorts of things, from being a poor musician to being a pretentious and selfish diva to being a self-destructive junkie. I don't care about any of that. Go listen to The Marble Index and understand how brilliant of a performer she could be.