via//chicago

np: "messenger" - blonde redhead

the redhead was another in a long list of bands that i always meant to check out, but never got around to it until now. i had frequently heard "no-wave" and "Sonic Youth" thrown out quite a bit when describing the band in the past, and that always intrigued me. but apparently not enough to actually go and buy an album or anything. so when i started reading some very positive reviews of the new album, i decided it was finally time to put and end to my apathy. and damn, this is some pretty good shit. not at all what i was expecting, but i of course have learned through a little research that this album doesn't sound so much like the old stuff. either way, its a worthwhile listen. very dreamy and atmospheric, without resorting to played out tricks of shoegazer and electronica. check it out.

Project AZ continues, as i journey my way through the 'D' section of my collection this week. one of the biggest surprises of this whole project so far came on the drive home from work tonight when i popped in 1990's Sex Packets by Digital Underground. most people remember this for being the album that birthed the "Humpty-Dance" and told us all that we should "Doowutchyalike", but what came as a surprise to me was just how well this album has stood up after nearly 15 years. it does sound a little dated, but the group was pushing the whole P-Funk thing a little further than most rap groups of the time, and that keeps it from being stale after so much time. "The Way We Swing" and "Rhymin' on the Funk" still pack a hell of a wallop, despite the lyrics and delivery that Nas needn't lose any sleep worrying about. the whole "Packet" theme towards the end of the disc detracts from the experience a little, but the opening half of this album is enjoyable as hell.

and yeah, a post today just wouldn't be complete without a mention of Kurt. ten years already? damn. it seems like only a couple years ago that half of my dorm floor was gathered in my room watching a tape of the MTV Unplugged performance, rendering us all speechless. Kurt's true beauty and fragility really came across that night, and we were all reminded of what a great loss it really was. who knew Kurt could get across even more feeling when he wasn't screaming with the amps turned up to 11? and as cliche as it may sound, i think there is a generation of us (like it or not) that will always remember where we were when we heard the news. no its not as romantic as say a JFK or a Princess Di, but it was one of those events that tied in closely to where we were as a group. many of us were stumbling into college, clueless and excited at the world in front of us and drunk on opportunity. it's a stretch here, but not vastly different from the "alternative" scene that we latched onto out of the need to belong to something more. it truly felt like we could accomplish anything in those heady days, but an event like Kurt's suicide shocked us back into reality. "alternative" was nothing more than another "scene", a "happening", in an industry with a long history of "scenes" and "happenings". Kurt's death reminded us that our musical heroes were only human, no different from those who scribbled Nevermind's lyrics into notebook after notebook during another boring class. and it all seemed to kinda deflate shortly after his death, didn't it? music seemed a little more hollow and empty for a time, as we slowly realized that the millions of grungey-come lately's just weren't going to fill the void. electronica replaced grunge as the "next big thing". and we all continued to stumble, just a little more grounded in reality this time. nothing was forever, we weren't going to change the world, and "alternative" was nothing more than a marketing scheme. maybe we knew this all along, maybe we didn't. it was just a vague sense of something in the air, something bigger than ourselves that we could latch onto and mark our generation as different. but hell, we were young and naive - these things happen. oh well, whatever. nevermind. it doesn't seem to be trendy these days to be a fan of Nirvana, just check many of the message board postings lately, dismissing him as "overrated" or "untalented". but i'm imagining that there are a lot more of you out there than are willing to admit, that in some small way Kurt Cobain and his music impacted what you listen to today. and that counts for something, doesn't it? for me, Nirvana led to Sonic Youth led to Pavement led to Touch and Go Records led to Slint led to millions of other bands that i most likely never would have bothered with if i hadn't embraced Nirvana with the zest of youth. so yeah, Kurt, i do miss you. i still think you are a selfish bastard who took a loving father away from a beautiful young girl, but i do miss you. the sun is gone, but i have a light. the man is gone, but i will always have the music. thanks Kurt.