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Nowhere (Album of the Day)
Tuesday, August 11, 2015
In the early 1990s, a wave of groups that used guitars to build hazy walls of sound crested in Britain; dubbed “shoegazers” because of their players' focus on effects pedals, these bands made some of the most dreamiest sounds in alternative rock. Oxford quartet Ride were leaders of this movement, and their debut NOWHERE remains among its crowning achievements, cited by Pitchfork as one of the decade's top 100 albums. Effectively coupling melody and distortion with spacey neo-psychedelia, the Sire set features 11 originals by guitarist Andy Bell and Mark Gardner including the shimmering single “Vapor Trail.” Bell turns 45 today, and we'll celebrate the birthday with a trip to NOWHERE.
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Feel Like Makin' Love (Album of the Day)
Monday, August 10, 2015
With classical training and a strong jazz background informing her brand of R&B, Roberta Flack was among the most distinctive artists on the radio in the early 1970s. She had a pair of No.1 hits and a couple of Grammys to her credit when she entered the studio to cut FEEL LIKE MAKIN' LOVE, and the title track was another smash; it topped the U.S. singles chart on this day in 1974. The Atlantic Records collection was the first she produced herself - under the pseudonym “Rubina Flake” - employing a small army of top jazz players and background singers (including future stars Patti Austin and Deniece Williams) to sublime effect. Beyond the title hit, songs like “Mr. Magic” and “Feelin' That Glow” set the tone for FEEL LIKE MAKIN' LOVE: ethereal beauty, rich emotional texture and intimate reverie.
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Back to Bedlam (Album of the Day)
Friday, August 7, 2015
James Blunt was a promising British songwriter with a publishing deal when producer Linda Perry took him under her wing as a performer. With a distinctive falsetto and equally strong material, Blunt's BACK TO BEDLAM quickly became one of the best sellers in U.K. pop history. If heartfelt ballads like “Goodbye My Lover” and “You're Beautiful” (which topped the British singles chart on this day in 2005) dominate the proceedings, the singer-songwriter has more than just romance on his mind here; “No Bravery” deals with Blunt's service in Kosovo in 1999 as a member of the Royal Armed Forces. A striking debut that sold more than 11 million copies around the world, BACK TO BEDLAM weaves a wistful spell that continues to captivate listeners a decade later.
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Bella Donna (Album of the Day)
Thursday, August 6, 2015
Even if the white-winged creature in Stevie Nicks' hand on the cover of BELLA DONNA isn't the dove mentioned in “Edge of Seventeen,” Fleetwood Mac’s resident enchantress sings like a bird throughout this set. Then at the pinnacle of the pop world, Stevie crafted a solo debut that was as hit-laden as a Mac album, with “Stop Draggin' My Heart Around” and “Leather and Lace” both reaching the Top Ten on the U.S. singles chart. Those two songs were duets with Tom Petty (who coproduced the album with Jimmy Iovine) and Don Henley, respectively, and other guest stars include members of Little Feat, the E Street Band and the M.G.’s. More than 30 years after the quadruple-platinum BELLA DONNA's release, its glitter has yet to fade.
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White Feathers (Album of the Day)
Wednesday, August 5, 2015
With their poofy dyed hair and goofy band name, it was tough to take Kajagoogoo seriously, and that was as it should be - the danceable synth-pop on the Leighton, U.K. quintet's debut WHITE FEATHERS was all about having a good time. The 1983 collection was helmed by Duran Duran's Nick Rhodes and that band's producer Colin Thurston, and its 10 originals include the New Wave classic “Too Shy.” But there's plenty more to love beyond that Top 10 U.S. hit here; songs like “Hang On Now,” “Ooh To Be Ah” and the title track are tuneful and hook-filled with a dash of jazz sprinkled in. The band's sound changed considerably with the departure of vocalist Limahl following this release, but WHITE FEATHERS is pure '80s (John Hughes plucked an instrumental off of it to open his film Sixteen Candles), and we'll give it another spin in honor of Kajagoogoo keyboardist Stuart Croxford Neale's birthday.
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The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn (Album of the Day)
Tuesday, August 4, 2015
This week in 1967, Pink Floyd released their debut, THE PIPER AT THE GATES OF DAWN. Cut at Abbey Road while The Beatles were recording SGT. PEPPER (and employing the Fabs' engineer Norman Smith as producer), the album stands as one of the cornerstones of British psychedelia. The collection is unique in the Floyd catalog for the dominating presence of lead guitarist/vocalist Syd Barrett, who wrote or cowrote all but one of the album's 11 songs. Though Barrett's copious consumption of LSD would soon lead to his departure from the band, here it fosters a hallucinatory listening experience, aided by the use of echo and other studio effects. Split between shorter pop-psych pieces (“Bike,” “Lucifer Sam”) and extended improvisations (such as concert staples “Astronomy Domine” and “Interstellar Overdrive”), THE PIPER AT THE GATES OF DAWN hailed the dawning of a new age and the arrival of one of rock's greatest groups.
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Ride The Lightning (Album of the Day)
Monday, August 3, 2015
Lightning struck for Metallica with their second studio album - the 1984 collection earned the band a label deal with Elektra and set them on the path to heavy metal stardom. Cut in Copenhagen with producer Flemming Rasmussen, RIDE THE LIGHTNING was a major step forward from the quartet's debut; the arrangements display greater harmonic complexity, and James Hetfield's lyrics have broadened in scope to touch upon social issues including the terrors of modern war (“For Whom The Bell Tolls”) and capital punishment (the title track). Metallica's bold sonic experimentation was all the more impressive given the siege conditions of the album's recording; the band's gear had been stolen three weeks before they hit Denmark, and tour commitments gave them less than a month in the studio. In spite of this, RIDE THE LIGHTNING is a thrash metal masterpiece, and we'll give it another ride today in honor of Hetfield's birthday.
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Monster (Album of the Day)
Friday, July 31, 2015
When the members of R.E.M. were planning their follow-up to AUTOMATIC FOR THE PEOPLE, drummer Bill Berry was adamant that the album should rock, and he got his wish in MONSTER. The 1994 Warner Bros. collection teems with grungy guitars, energy and experimentation, with lean and forceful arrangements well suited for the quartet's first tour in nearly six years. Michael Stipe's vocals are deliberately set back in the mix but break through the distortion often enough to reveal an ambivalence toward celebrity as a lyrical theme - “What's the Frequency, Kenneth?” was inspired by an attack on newscaster Dan Rather and “Let Me In” reflects on the death of Kurt Cobain. If the sound was aggressive, it was still accessible, with hit singles “Crush With Eyeliner,” “Strange Currencies” and “Bang And Blame” among the dozen tracks. MONSTER reached No.1 on the album chart, and we'll give it another spin today in honor of Berry's birthday.
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The Virgin Suicides (Deluxe Version - 15th Anniversary) (Album of the Day)
Thursday, July 30, 2015
As one might guess from their name, French electronic duo Air know how to generate atmosphere with their music - which makes them perfect for soundtracks. The group's first film score was for Sofia Coppola's debut feature, THE VIRGIN SUICIDES, an enigmatic tale of repressed high school desires. Air's Jean-Benoît Dunckel and Nicolas Godin watched VHS tapes of the film to draw inspiration, and for the eerie, synthetic and tempestuous end-credit song, “Playground Love,” the two called in their friend Thomas Mars from the band Phoenix to provide vocals. The cult favorite soundtrack sounds better than ever on the new 15th Anniversary Deluxe Edition of THE VIRGIN SUICIDES, which includes a remastered version of the original album, a pair of studio outtakes and unreleased live performances recorded in January 2000 at Los Angeles' American Legion Hall and KCRW radio station.
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Snakes & Arrows (Album of the Day)
Wednesday, July 29, 2015
“It's big, it's bold, and I think it's some of the best work we've done in years. I'm really pleased with the quality of the songs, and there's lots of playing on it,” noted Rush vocalist/bassist Geddy Lee of his group's SNAKES & ARROWS on its 2007 release. The Canadian progressive trio's final album for Atlantic Records was shaped to a degree by the Internet; producer Nick Raskulinecz volunteered his services after seeing online posts about Rush's recording plans, and the 'net allowed California-based lyricist Neil Peart to collaborate more easily with his bandmates in Toronto. If this set benefits from forward-looking technology - it's among the most well-recorded of the band's career - it also recalls the richly layered textures of Rush's '70s classics. While songs like “Far Cry,” “Spindrift” and “The Larger Bowl (A Pantoum)” are darker thematically than their early work, the three instrumentals here show the group's playing to be as brilliant as ever. Geddy Lee celebrates a birthday today, and we'll cue up SNAKES & ARROWS in his honor.
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