ryan adams

The Dunce Cap: Week of Feb. 21, 2012

in: heavy rotation

The Dunce Cap, Vol. 43: I should find someone better for me, but Mom says we’re born this way. (click on link to listen to mix via 8tracks or play above)

1. “Holland 1945” – Neutral Milk Hotel
2. “Dawned on Me” – Wilco
3. “Star Wars” – Ryan Adams
4. “Rubber Lover” – Marmaduke Duke
5. “Sweethearts” – Butch Walker & the Black Widows
6. “Girls and Boys in Love” – The Rumble Strips
7. “Range Life” – Pavement
8. “Holiday” – The Get Up Kids
9. “Glendora” – Rilo Kiley
10. “I Can’t Make You Love Me” – Bon Iver

I’m sorry for the delay with this post, folks. I made the mix some time ago, but I’d forgotten to post the accompanying WordPress post. I’m sure you all were eagerly awaiting my return.

I’m stationed currently in one of the journalism labs at Northwestern, and I’m looking out the giant glass window, positively dismayed to find snow flurrying outside. What is this nonsense? Chicago weather is utterly fickle, and we’ll go from sunshine (see Wednesday’s love-for-global-warming-inducing midday 60s) to driving rain to snow. It’s days like this I revel in the idea of approaching Florida warmth.

For now, this playlist ought to rev up your desire, too, for something resembling spring. These ten tracks are fairly representative of what I’ve been listening to quite a bit lately. I’m sans iPod – and, really, reliable technology in general – but spending 40 hours a week in a moving vehicle, so I’ve started to slowly rebuild my music collection. Reckless Records and Second Hand Tunes, two local Chicago record stores, offer much in the way of cheap used CDs, and I’ve spent hours on end picking through their selections. The result is a car trip full of 90s nostalgia, from Pavement to the Get Up Kids to Jawbreaker to the Gin Blossoms, and, while Pavement’s getting quite a bit of play on my radio these days, it’s Neutral Milk Hotel which has really stolen my heart. I had the unique pleasure of catching NMH’s Jeff Mangum in Milwaukee last month, and it was truly transcendental. Both of the group’s full lengths have been in regular rotation as of late, and “Holland 1945” – rumored to be about Anne Frank – is likely my favorite tune from both releases.

The Pavement track here (“Range Life,” from their seminal album Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain) is one of my favorites, with, it seems, frontman Stephen Malkmus cleverly employing a thesaurus to detail the comforts of laziness. The Get Up Kids’ “Holiday,” the lead track from their 1999 album Something to Write Home About, remains one of my very favorites, and I was thrilled to find a copy of the album after losing mine so many years ago. This mix also has a sweet Butch Walker track from his newest album, The Spade, and an excellent Bon Iver B-side, his haunting cover of Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me,” as well as two of the catchiest tracks I’ve heard in some time, Marmaduke Duke‘s totally filthy “Rubber Lover” and the Rumble Strips‘ “Girls and Boys in Love.” These are ten I’m really loving, which, I suppose, has been my m.o. with these for a while now. Alas, alack.

Happy listening.

The Dunce Cap: Dec. 27, 2010

in: heavy rotation

Image from Toothpaste for Dinner

The Dunce Cap, Vol. 30: The sun is up – I’m so fizzy, I could burst! (click on link to listen to mix via 8tracks)

1. “Mint Car” – The Cure
2. “Sun in an Empty Room” – The Weakerthans
3. “Happiness Writes White” – Harvey Danger
4. “Graduate” – Third Eye Blind
5. “New York, New York” – Ryan Adams
6. “The Sweet Part of the City” – The Hold Steady
7. “Back in the Saddle” – Someone Still Loves You, Boris Yeltsin
8. “All the Young Dudes” – Mott the Hoople
9. “Work” – Jimmy Eat World
10. “Kick Some Ass” – Stroke 9
11. “You Gave Your Love to Me Softly” – Weezer
12. “Some Fantastic” – Barenaked Ladies
13. “Popular Mechanics for Lovers” – Beulah
14. “Magic Boyfriend” – Matt Pond PA
15. “Let’s Dance” – David Bowie
16. “Star Bodies” – The New Pornographers
17. “Doing All the Things That Wouldn’t Make Your Parents Proud” – The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
18. “Atlantis” – Donovan
19. “Sugar Daddy” – Hedwig and the Angry Inch (Broadway OST)
20. “More Adventurous” – Rilo Kiley
21. “To Be Surprised” – Sondre Lerche

Well, it’s the 30th Dunce Cap of all time, and it’s the last of the year – I feel like this should be a celebratory moment! As I talked about rather extensively in my last post, this is AN EXCITING BRAND NEW YEAR, and I am ready for all of the excitement and thrall I anticipate it will bring. This mix is themed!, and it’s really a sister post to the Dunce Cap’s New Year’s Resolutions.

Basically, these are 21 songs that I hope will define my 2011. You should mostly be able to catch the gist from the title, but a few may require some explanation and commentary. Many of these songs are actually kind of sad – they’re not literal representations of what I want, but they each have special significance to me. There’s also a division of sorts among songs. An explanation after the jump.

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The Dunce Cap: August 16, 2010

in: heavy rotation

Marshall's very own Presidential Rob Scrawl!

The Dunce Cap, Vol. 21: You snooze, you lose. Well I have snost and lost. (listen to mix via 8tracks)

1. “I Hear the Bells” – Mike Doughty
2. “Everything Shines” – The Push Stars
3. “The Same Fire” – Bishop Allen
4. “How’s Your Sister?” – Flick
5. “Carry the Zero” – Built to Spill
6. “Shake the Sheets” – Ted Leo & the Pharmacists
7. “Banned (By the Man)” – Someone Still Loves You, Boris Yeltsin
8. “Wish You Were Here” – Ryan Adams
9. “The Lonely 1” – Wilco
10. “In the Beginning” – The Stills

This is an itty, bitty sleepy mix. Mostly. Let’s just say – this ought to be quite the departure from the past few mixes, so imbued with Craig Finn‘s sexy/raspy voice.

It’s been a hectic week here in Lalaland, and I’m jonesin’ for a playlist that’ll soothe my nerves – not increase them. There’s energy in these songs, sure, but there’s also a particular sonorous quality to each of these. Y’know, they make me want to sing along, still, but softly. Except “How’s Your Sister?” But that should go without saying, right? There’s a lyric “Now I – I’m just asking. There ain’t no reason for you to get uptight.” It’s an unnecessary little ditty. And it, of course, requires a louder voice. And, oddly, Flick is a band I can’t seem to find anything about online. This track is from the Cheap Date compilation.

But, seriously. There’s Mike Doughty (yes, from Soul Coughing. And, yes, this track is from one of the most famous scenes in this show I kind of like. Maybe you’ve heard of it. It’s called Veronica Mars.), and SSLYBY and The Push Stars (this sunshine-y song from the There’s Something About Mary soundtrack nearly makes up for the fact that a Google search for the band returns a glowing endorsement from Mr. Matchbox Twenty). It’s a pretty solid mix of tracks to make you smile and feel generally loved. Especially if you don’t pay too much attention to the lyrics. It’s all in the melody this week.

Happy listening, y’all.

Also – Reblogged from Confessions of a Pioneer Woman

The Pioneer Woman's dog Charlie

My dear pal Mike sent me this treasure. It’s from the The Pioneer Woman, a site I enjoy immensely. In this one, she combats the yawn-inducing country life with a little pet experiment. This one’s from June ’09, long before I started to read. It’s a major winner! Check it out at her site.

The Dunce Cap: August 2, 2010

in: heavy rotation

Yarmulke Poodle!

The Dunce Cap, Vol. 19: It sounds impossible but, man, it’s true. You are the bad, the bad seed of this town. (listen to mix via 8tracks)

1. “All the Pretty Girls Go to the City” – Spoon
2. “The Village Green Preservation Society” – The Kinks
3. “Trouble” – Voxtrot
4. “King of Anything” – Sara Bareilles
5. “Meet Virginia” – Train
6. “Your Boyfriend Sucks” – The Ataris
7. “Amy” – Ryan Adams
8. “Sway” – The Perishers
9. “Wedding Song” – Anais Mitchell ft. Justin Vernon
10. “Tightrope (Wondamix)” – Janelle Monae ft. B.O.B. & Lupe Fiasco

My apologies for this mix coming around so late. It’s been a hectic week of work, car rides, stadium food and ultimate Braves domination. But the Dunce Cap is back with a brand new mix! Let the gasps ensue.

This is a delightfully bouncy soundtrack to the last month of summer. Or last week of summer, for you poor souls not on the magnificent quarter system! It’s full of wondrous songs by artists I adore (yes, even The Ataris!), including Spoon, Voxtrot (who very sadly parted ways in June after a small tour) and Ryan Adams (who released Orion, his first “fully-realized sci-fi metal concept album,” in May). There’s a track from Anais Mitchell‘s Hadestown, a folk-rock opera telling the tale of  poet Orpheus, featuring Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon. There’s the Lupe Fiasco/B.O.B. remix of Janelle Monae‘s sing-a-long “Tightrope” (so so excited to see Monae with Of Montreal Sept. 25 in Chicago!). And then there’s Train… Not really much of a fit for this mix, but a fun song that I’ve long adored worthy of a place in a mix of songs to play at maximum volume on car speakers.

Happy listening!

The Dunce Cap: July 12, 2010

in: heavy rotation

Ralph Wiggum - Image courtesy of Fox

The Dunce Cap, Vol. 16: I’m a pop sensation! I’m a pop sensation! (mix via 8tracks)
^^Click the link to listen to the mix.

Names
1. “Jason Lee” – All Girl Summer Fun Band
2. “Michael” – Franz Ferdinand
3. “Ralph Wiggum” – The Bloodhound Gang
Cars
4. “Bitchin’ Camaro” – The Dead Milkmen
5. “El Caminos in the West” – Grandaddy
6. “Survival Car” – Fountains of Wayne
Colors
7. “Sixteen Blue” – The Replacements
8. “Everything is Green” – The Essex Green
9. “Red” – Elbow
Numbers
10. “Thirteen” – Big Star
11. “83” – John Mayer
12. “#27” – Marvelous 3
Places
13. “New York, New York” – Ryan Adams
14. “ATL” – Butch Walker
15. “Chicago at Night” – Spoon
Careers
16. “Rich Wife” – The Long Winters
17. “Heavy Metal Drummer” – Wilco
18. “Fred Jones, Pt. 2” – Ben Folds
Homes
19. “House of Books” – The Pop Project
20. “Treehouse” – I’m From Barcelona
21. “Love Shack” – The B52s

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The Dunce Cap: June 21, 2010

in: heavy rotation

Terry Richardson photographs Matthew Gray Gubler

The Dunce Cap, Vol. 13: Turns out I was a vampire myself in the devil town. (mix via 8tracks)

1. “Devil Town” – Tony Lucca
2. “Your Hand in Mine” – Explosions in the Sky
3. “Muzzle of Bees” – Wilco
4. “I Made a Resolution” – Sea Wolf
5. “Carmensita” – Devendra Banhart
6. “Sci-Fi Kid” – Blitzen Trapper
7. “September Gurls” – Big Star
8. “Political Scientist” – Ryan Adams
9. “Gene Autry” – Beulah
10. “Rewind” – Stereophonics
11. “The Light” – The Album Leaf
12. “Eyes” – Rogue Wave
13. “Hard Rain” – Shout Out Louds
14. “Walk Over Me” – Dirtie Blonde
15. “Bang a Gong (Get it On)” – T. Rex

So, to be fair – the photo with this mix has nothing to do with this mix. Really, it’s just a launch pad for me to talk about Terry Richardson and Matthew Gray Gubler, as well as to complete my weekly trifecta of pin-ups. Now, this isn’t a gossip blog. It’s not the springboard for me to coo and fawn over the foxy celebrities of network television. Two weeks ago, The Dunce Cap celebrated freaks and geeks alike, and this week’s edition has a decidedly different theme.

The Dunce Cap, Vol. 13 features 15 tracks (it’s an edition and a half!) about football. Good ol’ rough n’ tough Southern football. Each of these tracks is from the soundtrack of NBC’s television drama, “Friday Night Lights,” from the first season and a half (of which I have watched 27 episodes in the last 48 hours). “Friday Night Lights” follows a high school football squad in the fictional small town of Dillon, Texas, where football reigns supreme, but it’s more than just a show about football. It’s a show with heart and with a killer cast – the characters exude charm and genuineness that extends past the petty fights and forlorn heartbreak of adolescence. The realistic nature of the show even survived the melodrama of a terrible murder subplot.

The show is fantastic. And what surpasses even the show’s eye candy, the plot twists, the characterization and the pretty awesome athleticism is the music. Yup, it all comes full circle. The soundtrack is replete with instrumental post-rock from – where else? – Texas, courtesy of Explosions in the Sky, and Tony Lucca‘s cover of the Daniel Johnston‘s eerie and haunting “Devil Town” appears multiple times throughout the first season and in a fairly titillating season three promo. Coach’s daughter Julie is an indie fangirl, convincing boyfriend Matt Saracen to see the Old 97’s and The Decemberists, and the music taste her fictional character boasts translates into a really well-rounded and interesting soundtrack.

Check out a small slice of the music from the series, and watch the rebroadcast of season 4 (originally shown on DirecTV Channel 101) on NBC Friday nights (when else).

And, for your eyes’ delight, check out two of the show’s original stars, Taylor Kitsch as fullback/running back Tim Riggins and Northwestern alumnus Zach Gilford as quarterback Matt Saracen. I apologize in advance for my salacious behavior, but yummy.

Taylor Kitsch of "FNL"

“I apologize to everyone here, and if you can find it within yourselves to let me make it up to you in the showers, I’d appreciate it.” – Tim Riggins, Season 2

Zach Gilford of "FNL"

“You don’t have to worry about me, in a fight I just kinda stand in the back and just yell stuff. ”    – Matt Saracen, Season 1

Happy listening.

Oh, and p.s. Matthew Gray Gubler portrays the nerdily inept  Dr. Spencer Reid on “Criminal Minds.” Terry Richardson is an allegedly handsy (but very talented) celebrity photographer. FTR.