cryptique

Thank you for that.

Bird has been in my "don't see what all the fuss is about" file for a while, but this new one is going to change my mind. I'm absolutely loving it.

I've been very slow to climb aboard this guy's bandwagon, but this is really good.

I don't know if "pity" is the right word, but I'm more or less on board with you. Of course, I was a huge Bragg fan long before Wilco (or even Uncle Tupelo) existed, and in his prime I believe he was one of the best songwriters of all time. As for Farrar, I think his peaks haven't been as high as Jeff's, but the quality of his output has been fairly consistent, and his early Tupelo work is still some of my favorite stuff ever.

I would dispute that grouping as being done "fairly." For one thing, I like SBS better than ST, and I think I probably like AM better than AGIB.

I probably love that record far more than most people, but it's really fantastic.

Lola vs. Powerman and the Moneygoround, Pt. 1

"decent amount of hiss" = the new drone I haven't heard of an actual rip out in the wild yet, but I'm hardly the best-informed source.

Yup.

I'm revisiting old R.E.M. that I shelved years ago and haven't really listened to since ... yesterday it was Automatic for the People, today it's this. This one has aged far better than I would have expected. Twenty years ago, to me it sounded nothing like the band's earlier albums (and I resented it for that), but now it strikes me as being much closer to its predecessors than its successors. I never thought I'd like this one very much, but I'm really enjoying it today.

Yup ... and Raised By Wolves is even better.

They take a break during the summer to stock back up on couches.

Salon.com's "Audiofile" column has "What Light" as its song of the day today. I'm pretty sure that non-subscribers can access this page and the download (128 kbps MP3), though you may have to click through some advertising to do so. Here's the accompanying text: - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Song of the Day: "What Light," Wilco "What Light" is the first I've heard from Wilco's upcoming "Sky Blue Sky" album, which is due out in May. After two albums in a row of restless experimentation, the song's straight-ahead country rock vibe comes as a bit of a surprise, albeit a comfortable,

I'm just happy that this is a hypothetical situation and I don't have to make such a choice.

Yeah, "Mothers, Sisters, Daughters & Wives" is one EP, not three. Those two are fantastic. The new self-titled, full-length album is good, but (in my opinion) not quite on the same level.

...and in the case of "On and On and On," I think it's quite wrong.

It's all the tracks from Voxtrot's Raised By Wolves and Mothers, Sisters, Daughters & Wives EPs, shuffled into a full-length playlist. And yes, it would have been a monster album.

You may want to take a look back and notice that I'm the one who initially defended you by pointing out that you joined the board quite a while ago. That said, if you really do read this board pretty often you'll understand why people are suspicious of any first post that hypes another artist. You're 100% guaranteed to get shit for that, whether or not it's deserved -- and yes, I'm acknowledging that it sometimes isn't deserved. Getting all snippy about it, however, will only make things worse. For the record, I'm a huge Parker fan (have been for at least a couple decades now) and I will

Awesome second post. I'm breathless in anticipation of the third.

Link?

...though this particular one joined the board nearly a year ago...

I'm not 100% sure, but on the solo recording I listened to earlier it sounds more like "stung." I'm pretty certain it's "yet." Also: you got something against "She Loves You"?

I actually quite like it, but I agree that it's probably a small step down from previous efforts. I do like it a bit more with each listen, though ... so who knows? Someone put the bonus EP that came with pre-orders up on Oink in FLAC. Haven't listened to that yet but I'm looking forward to it.

It's really not hard to figure them out if you listen. The only tricky parts are whether he's saying "what light," "one light," or "white light" at various points. Also, I think it's "stung awake in the night," though it might be "stone awake."

Fredo (John Cazale) is a sad story. Died at 42 from bone cancer. A heck of a talent ... it's truly sad that we didn't get to see more from him.