After watching The Rock-afire Explosion jam out to Usher (see Love in This Club), I thought they needed some indie love too. Should I bid on the song with the biggest play count on my iTunes? A classic indie song? One of my favorites from a fallen icon? Or instead of digging deep, should I think in the moment like I did as a kid and say you know, it would be bad ass to see a bear with Tom Gabel’s voice and a pom pom wielding Mitzi Mozzerela as Tegan Quin.
My fondest memories amidst jamming out to The Rock-afire Explosion include the time a friend found a Little Person’s wallet at the bottom of the plastic ball pit, and long car rides with a group of sugar-induced kids singing their hearts out to random eighties hits (NKOTB) and A Nightmare on Elm Street theme song (nine, ten, FREDDY’S BACK AGAIN!) Although I am much older now, I still have bad days where I exclaim to friends that “only skee ball can make me happy”…and it never fails.
“Borne on the FM Waves of the Heart” is a collaboration by two artists from amazing bands (go buy their albums if you haven’t already), and has been playing in my headphones since its release. If you have yet to hear this song, enjoy a version that will take you back to a day of working hard for tickets instead of pay checks, eating bad cheese pizza like it was the Last Supper, and watching life-sized kinda-creepy stuffed animals sing and dance for your viewing pleasure.
I won this bid in a landslide, and it was worth every token…
Against Me! (featuring Tegan Quin) - Borne On The FM Waves of the Heart
from New Wave, 2007
Performed by The Rock-afire Explosion. Choreography by Aaron Fechter.
What’s the oddest song in your playlist today? Bongwater, an indie band formed in 1985, released four albums and a debut EP before breaking up seven years later over financial issues. The band consists of Ann Manuson, a performance artist, nightclub performer and actress most known for her role in the 1985 film “Desperately Seeking Susan”, and Mark Kramar, a member of an assortment of bands including Butthole Surfers and Ween, also having produced several artists such as Galaxie 500, Low, GWAR, and Daniel Johnston under his now bankrupt Shimmy-Disc label.
Psychedelic Sewing Room is a trippy tune with spoken word that tells a peculiar story of corporate imagery, betrayed business partners, and a tiny female reincarnation of Christ (making for an appropriately titled song…and band name). The first time I listened to this track, it brought to mind the spoken word of Miho Hatari (from Cibo Matto) in Handsome Boy Modeling School’s “Metaphysical”, another far out track that’s worth a listen.
Bongwater - Psychedelic Sewing Room
from Too Much Sleep, 1989
Bongwater - Psychedelic Sewing Room Lyrics (starting at 2:47)
In the psychedelic sewing room.
One side of the room is filled with Disney icons.
Donald Ducks, Mickey t-shirts, Peter Pan figurines…
All with the official Disney tag of approval hanging from them.
The other side of the room sells expensive jewelry.
Watches, pearls, gold chains, rings.
I pick up two miniature leather wallets that open up in several sections.
Embossed in gold on the front are two men’s names,
linked together in corporate matrimony.
They are partners in a very high powered (?) conglomerate and I am told by the salesman that they have been buddies since childhood.
They loved each other like brothers.
The brothers they never had.
Except recently there has been financial trouble within the firm and each are accusing the other of double crossing them.
Bringing ruin upon the business.
So each man has had the other wallet engraved with insults.
Etched into the expensive leather:
To John, a two-timing scum bag.
To Bill, the viper.
On one of the display cases sits a (?).
A low shallow basin tech container designed for Ikebana, the art of Japanese flower arranging.
The (?) is filled with water and inside is a tiny women dressed in a brown Monk’s rob.
She tells us that she is the second incarnation of Christ.
She is furiously scrubbing a pair of natural ceramic feet with a wire brush.
The vigorous brushing turns the feet to brilliant shimmering brass.
As she brushes she begins to disappear, and she and the feet dissolve into thin air.
The water in the (?) slowly turns bloody.
The water soon becomes pink and two roses appear.
Everyone looks at the roses and they begin to cry….
Islands - Creeper Lyrics
Right from the start I was stabbed in the heart.
Didn’t
know I wasn’t breathing.
Didn’t
know I had been bleeding.
Open my door.
Thought I was alone but someone was hiding in the dark room in my home.
Haunted.
You will remember some of it.
But if you solve it,
you will remember all of it.
Creeper in my home.
Crawled in through the window.
I grabbed the kitchen knife.
Couldn’t stick it in. No.
Creeper had his own.
Shinin’ in the moonlight.
My home was very cold.
And something didn’t feel right.
Right from the start I was stabbed in the heart.
Didn’t
know i wasn’t breathing.
Didn’t
know i had been bleeding.
Open my door.
Thought I was alone but someone was hiding in the dark room in my home.
Girl Talk - Let Me See You Tracklist
0:00 Donna Summer - “Bad Girls”
0:00 Cameo - “Word Up!”
0:02 Dem Franchize Boyz - “Lean Wit It, Rock Wit It”
0:15 Gwen Stefani - “The Sweet Escape”
0:30 Bizarre Inc. - “I’m Gonna Get You”
0:30 R. Kelly with T.I. and T-Pain - “I’m a Flirt”
1:13 Daft Punk - “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger”
1:15 Fleetwood Mac - “Gypsy”
1:15 Tone Loc - “Wild Thing”
1:30 Trina - “I Got a Thing for You”
2:15 Rick Ross - “Hustlin’”
2:18 Justin Timberlake - “LoveStoned / I Think She Knows Interlude”
2:22 David Bowie - “Rebel Rebel”
2:44 2 Live Crew - “I Wanna Rock”
2:44 Busy P - “Chop Suey”
2:50 DJ Funk - “Pump That Shit”
2:58 The Jets - “Crush on You”
2:58 M.I.A. - “Boyz”
3:13 The Cranberries - “Dreams”
3:42 Michael Jackson - “P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)”
3:42 Bachman-Turner Overdrive - “Takin’ Care of Business”
3:52 Chicago - “Saturday in the Park
M. Ward - Poison Cup Lyrics
One.
One.
One.
One or two won’t do.
‘Cause I want it all.
And a sip.
A sip.
A sip or a spoonful won’t do.
No, I want it all.
And I hope.
I hope.
Hope you know what I’m thinking of.
I want all of your love.
I need all of your love.
She said if love.
If love.
Is a poison cup.
Then drink it up. Cause a sip.
A sip.
Or a spoonful won’t do.
Won’t do nothing for you.
Except mess you up.
And I hope.
I hope.
Hope you know what this means.
I’m gonna give you everything.
I’m gonna give you everything.
Her Space Holiday will be back in Texas after a four year break from the Lone Star state to promote their new album, “XOXO, Panda and the New Kid Revival”. The 14-track album is two and a half years in the making, and is set to be released on September 9th, 2008. The new album doesn’t contain any samples or electronics, just natural instruments which is quite a change from past HSH releases. The album features guest appearances by Caitlin Love, Kenneth Holland, and Hanni el Khatib. HSH was booked to play SXSW, and I remember my dismay when I saw their name on the south-by schedule one day…and then gone the next. They had to cancel that date, so here’s a second shot at ATX love. The new Texas tour date with Lymbyc System was added in short notice and tickets will be sold at the door, so get there early.
Added Coolness Factor Bonus Point: HSH has toured with the likes of Bright Eyes, Pinback and The American Analog Set (three all time awesome indie bands).
If she had her way, she would know what to say to that girl that comes into her store. By herself, but not alone. It’s her confident charm. And the curve of her arms that tightly bends her circuitry, into a twisted mess of interesting. Her Space Holiday - A Match Made In Texas
I did this myself, it’s a sick cry for help. But it doesn’t mean the situation’s clean. Additional stress that will come from the press, the mess I made putting my life on parade. Now the writers can say “We were right all along, you can’t make someone love you with your songs.” Her Space Holiday – My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend
I used to know this boy who took notes in a book. But he ripped out all the pages, before I got a look. At all the words he scribbled, at all the lines he filled. But the ink stains on his fingers, told me he was skilled. At capturing a feeling, that most of us just miss. The simple pain of living, with goodbyes on our lips. Her Space Holiday – Japanese Gum
Sympathy is everything, when everything fell short. A textbook example of childhood in shambles. It’s not what I want, but it’s what I got. Eventually, I came to see I was seeing things all wrong. I’ve no expectations of people who gave in. My broken heart beats like a bomb. Her Space Holiday – Forever and a Day
The Grammy-Award winning and Academy-Award nominated singer and songwriter, Aimee Mann, will be in Austin tomorrow night. She has been performing for over 26 years, with a discography that includes 15 albums. Will everyone stand up and tearfully sing along Magnolia-style to Mann’s “Wise Up“? One can only hope.
The opening act, David Ford, is a one-man show formerly of the indie rock group Easyworld. It’s safe to call his solo performance an “act”, as Ford is known for a live performance that boasts a sound that appears to be backed by a full band. Checkout the video for “Go to Hell” to get a glimpse of what to expect at a show. It was recorded live and in one take, with Ford playing each instrument while mastering the looping effect that he brings to most of his songs.
Shout Out Louds - The Comeback Lyrics
I’m kind of tired,
cause you wouldn’t let me sleep last night.
I’m a reasonable man,
but i can’t believe what’s on your mind.
And the past three weeks were the saddest weeks.
And the words you said oh, made me weak. I’m out of my mind.
I’m about to crack, so
let’s call this the comeback.
I been pushed around,
and I’m not gonna get pushed this time.
Cause the time is mine,
but i can’t believe what’s on your mind.
And the past three weeks were the saddest weeks.
And the words you said oh, made me weak.
I’m out of my mind.
I’m about to crack, so
let’s call this the comeback.
Let’s call this the comeback again.
Let’s call this the comeback.
