The Shitty Beatles? They suck.

So Julian Casablancas, the lanky misanthropic lead singer and songwriter for the Strokes is putting out a solo record, Phrazes for the Young on October 19th. The first single is "11th Dimension" and it rocks.

To me, it sounds like a remix of a song from the second half of The Strokes' First Impressions of Earth, as if someone stripped the vocals and layed under them some hipster techno. But hey, its kinda growing on me. We'll see how the rest of the album turns out in a few weeks.

(and as for the post title, it's obviously from Wayne's World, but The Strokes used to play secret NYC gigs as the Shitty Beatles once they became popular. Also, countdown to the arrival of the Mono Box Set has begun, so I'm keeping it all tied together. SYNERGY!)

Tomorrow Never Knows: How I Won The Beatles

So over at Flavorwire (which is an awesome blog, pop-culture/design stories, check it out), they held a contest. Normally, I'm not one for online, comments based feats of strength, but they had me in the first line: Win The Beatles’ Limited-Edition Mono Box Set.

Officially hooked. The stereo box set is what I had my sights on, being cheaper and more of the familiar tunes I loved, but even then, and I'd probably have to not eat for a few days so I could afford it. But the mono? That retails at a whopping $270 bucks. And it doesn't include Yellow Submarine, Abbey Road or Let It Be. But I wanted it so badly. Mono is how those albums were recorded and meant to be heard. I want to go to there.

So the contest was "leave a comment explaining which Beatles song you’re most excited to hear in mono, and why." Here's the wordy, self-referential answer I submitted:

For a Beatles fanatic like me, there is really only one answer: Tomorrow Never Knows. Yes, I know; it's aural-apocalypse seems more fitting for the endless duality of stereo. But it was originally recorded in mono. It was originally mixed in mono. It was originally dreamt up, most likely in one of John Lennon's nightmares, to be heard in mono. And the fact that the song succeeds at being so sonically complex and full, while being in mono, is why I'm so excited to hear it in it's true form. It makes you feel like angels of death are swooping right next to your head, in mono. It jumps your heart to follow Ringo's chasing beat, in mono. And you fear what can only be assumed is the sound of the afterlife, in mono. Not a bad feat for a song with only one chord.

So I won. Got the email this morning. They're mailing it to me today. Is this real life? I can eat this week!

Playlist: September 2009

It's been so long since I've done a monthly playlist, I felt I owed it to you. So here's a fine selection of tunes to finish off your September. New and old, urban and rural, 'Mericans and Limeys, side projects and comebacks, solos and duets; it's a full spectrum of awesome. Enjoy.

Monsters of Folk - Losin' Yo Head
The indie rock supergroup released their first original album this week, and after a few run-through listens, here's the single that pops out at me. It's upbeat, full sounding, and raucous with a great melody. Jim James takes the lead vocals on this one while M.Ward, Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis back him up with a bar band sound.

Pearl Jam - Speed of Sound
No, E.V. & Co. did not cover a Coldplay song (thank god). They did however released a new album, Backspacer, this week as well. "The Fixer" is the typical rockin' single, but I think this is the best, and most surprising track. It's a down-tempo, anthematic, Nashville-style shuffle. Mature but not cheesy; this isn't like a latter-day Eagles track, it has a certain amount of gravitas.

Jay-Z - Empire State of Mind
As I said before, I am not a hip-hop fan. I don't try to be, and I certainly shy away from saying anything authoritative about it. But, this song fuckin' rules. Great hook. Here's the download after I YouTube teased you.

Artic Monkeys - Crying Lightning
I cannot say I love the newest album by these young Brits, Humbug, but I do quite fancy this song. The whole EP was produced by Josh Homme, Mr. Queens of the Stone Age himself. As a result, much of the Monkey's signature brit-pop sound is replaced with a laid-back stoner-rock vibe...only with English accents. Which is odd. But this is the best of the lot.

Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson - I Don't Know What To Do
I've already given you the lead single off their Break Up record, "Relator," but I couldn't let you leave without hearing this great track. A dreamy roots rock duet with a set of realistic lyrics; one of those half break-up, half make-up songs.

The Replacements - Seen Your Video
While visiting DC, my cousin brought be into his world where they listen to the Replacements all weekend (it's pretty awesome). This timeless rocker is a response to the superficiality of MTV at the time (the mid to late 80's). An extended yet tight rock instrumental with a few shouted lyrics is unpalatable to a video crowd, but perfect on vinyl and for an army of indie-punks. The Hold Steady certainly took a big listen to these guys.

Swingin' Medallions - Double Shot of My Baby's Love
I heard this song on Hawaiian oldie's radio, but at first I thought it was some kind of 90's novelty song. It sounds decidedly Stax, but with background sounds of a frat party, and lyrics like "She loved me so long and she loved me so hard/I finally passed out in her front yard" it didn't sound like something that could have seriously come from the 60's. But there it is, a real R&B song, and I love it.

Talking Heads - Right Start
During a drunken night/early morning of friends surfing my iTunes and looking for something to dance to, my buddy exclaimed "Where the hell is all your Talking Heads?" And I had no good answer. Sure, I had Stop Making Sense, but I did not have anything further. So I dug deep into their discography the next day, finding a re-issue of Remain in Light. Not only did it have the usual track listing, but it featured a few studio outtakes, including this one of "Once In A Lifetime." It's an early jam establishing that thumping bass and sonic atmosphere, but with a funky guitar line replacing the lyrics. It's a badass groove in this incarnation.

Tabula Rasa

I finally kicked Blondie out, and helped her set up her own blog, so I could have mine back. Check it out: iamblondie.blogspot.com

As for me, I'm going to try to steer this space back to it's roots: my photography, recommended music, and strange tales of living in the City. So hopefully tomorrow I can get you some of all three.

Until then, enjoy this Song of the Day. It took me going to Hawaii and DC to get into a hometown anthem, but Jay-Z's new single "Empire State of Mind" is just fuckin' great. I missed NYC a whole helluva lot, and it's great to be back in the City with the Giants rolling and Fall just beginning to hit. I'm not a hip-hop guy at all (shocking, I know), but I can't argue against a pop gem because of genre:

Blondie Gets Her Own

This will be my last guest post on the MNLJ. I am embarking on my own blog, something I never thought I would enjoy until the MNLJ made me do this.

Highlights to come in order of appearance:

1. My Final Days Here

2. Month or two of severe seasonal depression when I leave this tropical paradise. Location: New Haven, CT

3. BC/Notre Dame Game in Chicago: Sequel to Lindsay & Conor’s wedding?? I sure hope so because we all had a feeling that that night was a good, good night.

4. Costa Rica: MNLJ & I are jet-set there in November for close friend Liza’s wedding

5. Becca & Steve’s First Hosting of a Family Thanksgiving in HOTlanta

LAST BUT NOT LEAST:

Gus: I am getting a puppy after Thanksgiving. He will be a pug and he will be awesome.



COMING SOON: http://iamblondie.blogspot.com/