A Rubber Door » Music

Foo Fighters Friday: All My Life

Speener — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 13:00:09 +0000

I’ve always thought that David Grohl has one of the best screams in rock – this is the song to use as an example (when I try and sing along at this in the car, I can’t talk for days after).

Big time rock anthem and a highlight of any Foo show.

Foo Fighters Friday: Best of You

Speener — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 16:31:42 +0000

One of the staples of any Foo Fighters’ show.

Foo Fighter Fridays: Big Me

Speener — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 17:39:37 +0000

One of my favorite touring acts, the Foo Fighters are touring this fall. For all of my reader, I’ve decided to post my favorite Foo songs eachFriday until they hit Philly on Thursday, November 10th (why not Foo Fighter Thursday – it doesn’t sound as good and I just remembered today.)

This week I start with Big Me: this is the first Foo Fighters’ video to show off the humor that they’ve become famous for. Not the first single from that album, but probably the most well known.

Waiting for Radiohead – King of Limbs

Speener — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 13:14:01 +0000

UPDATE: Wait no longer – Radiohead released the album a day early. In true Radiohead fashion, it was released early because “everything was ready and in place, so Radiohead decided there’s no need to wait an extra day.”

Back in the day I remember buying albums unheard. No 30 second samples. No streams. No bootlegs. Maybe you’d hear a song on the radio, but that was it.

Now we make decisions based on an avalanche of information and access, and the experience has long ago changed.

Tomorrow Radiohead’s next album “The King of Limbs” will be released and I haven’t heard a damn thing – and I like that.

Don’t get me wrong, I love new technology opening me to more music than I’d ever have access to before. But I don’t need any information to know that I would buy Radiohead’s album and enjoy.

Going into tomorrow with all my expectations in tact is refreshing.

Cool cover songs

Speener — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 13:45:33 +0000

My iTunes collection is full of unique, weird covers, so I’ve been working on a playlist of cool cover songs. It’s difficult, because often I didn’t realize a song I liked was a cover (growing up, I didn’t realize “Pretty Woman” wasn’t an Al Green song. There are also covers like Toxic by Mark Ronson or “Common People” by William Shatner which surpass the original.)

So here are fifty some songs that I know are covers. I may be wrong about the original artist – let me know if I am. Share your favorite covers in the comments section. Click here to see the full list.

On another note – don’t forget to tune into my friend Joey’s show every Monday at 3 PM on Y Rock on XPN .

Name	Artist	Original Artist (I think)
No Surprises	Easy Star All-Stars	Radiohead
Reason to Believe	Michael Penn & Aimee Mann	Bruce Springsteen
Heroes	Peter Gabriel	David Bowie
Mercy Street	Elbow	Peter Gabriel
Let Down	Easy Star All-Stars	Radiohead
Human Nature	David Mead	Michael Jackson
Gone Daddy Gone	Gnarls Barkley	Violent Femmes
Sleep To Dream	Bettye Lavette	Fiona Apple
Oh, Pretty Woman	Al Green	Roy Orbison
Wonderwall	Ryan Adams	Oasis
Hurt	Johnny Cash	Nine Inch Nails
Crazy Mary	Pearl Jam	Victoria Williams
i’m looking through you	The Wallflowers	The Beatles
Pennyroyal Tea	Kristin Hersh	Nirvana
Lights	The Jayhawks	Victoria Williams
They Don’t Know	Tracey Ullman
Lay Lady Lay	Magnet	Bob Dylan
Personal Jesus	Johnny Cash	Depeche Mode
Handle With Care	Jenny Lewis with The Watson Twins	Travelling Wilburys
Beautiful	Elvis Costello	Christina Aguilera
Paranoid Android	Section	Radiohead
Hallelujah	Jeff Buckley	Leonard Cohen
Keep the Car Running (BBC Radio 1′s Six Weeks of Summer)	Foo Fighters	Arcade Fire
Airbag	Easy Star All-Stars	Radiohead
Helter Skelter	U2	The Beatles
The Man Who Sold The World	Nirvana	David Bowie
let it be	Nick Cave	The Beatles
Crazy	Shawn Colvin	Gnarlz Barkley
Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa (Vampire Weekend Cover)	Hot Chip & Peter Gabriel	Vampire Weekend
I Want You Back	Discovery	The Jackson 5
Come Talk To Me	Bon Iver	Peter Gabriel
Private Eyes	The Bird And The Bee	Hall & Oates
Wave of Mutilation	Kristin Hersh	The Pixies
Karma Police	Section	Radiohead
Hey Ya	Booker T.	Outkast
across the universe	Rufus Wainwright	The Beatles
Just (featuring Phantom Planet)	Mark Ronson	Radiohead
Tenderness On The Block	Shawn Colvin	Jackson Browne
Toxic (featuring Ol’ Dirty Bastard & Tiggers)	Mark Ronson	Britney Spears
Sea Of Love	Cat Power	Phil Phillips
I Don’t Remember	David Byrne	Peter Gabriel
Mexican Radio	El Vez	Wall of Voodoo
Common People	William Shatner featuring Joe Jackson	Pulp
How Am I Different	Bettye Lavette	Aimee Mann
Thirteen	Elliott Smith	Big Star
I Will Survive	Cake	Gloria Gaynor
God Put a Smile On Your Face (featuring The Daptone Horns)	Mark Ronson	Coldplay
(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction	Cat Power	Rolling Stones
Flume	Peter Gabriel	Bon Iver
Hospital Beds	Florence and the Machine	Cold War Kids
(Looking For) The Heart Of Saturday Night	Shawn Colvin	Tom Waits
Kiss On My List	The Bird And The Bee	Hall & Oates
Four Season in One Day (live)	Mary Chapin Carpenter	Crowded House
My Body Is a Cage	Peter Gabriel	Arcade Fire
Paranoid Android	Easy Star All-Stars	Radiohead
Trouble	Kristin Hersh	Cat Stevens
Little Wing	Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble	Jimi Hendrix
Stop Me	Mark Ronson	The Smiths

Radio doesn’t have to suck

Speener — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 16:00:32 +0000

There was a time when radio didn’t suck. Sure there was payola, but generally the music won out. Those times seem long ago.

Last week I was listening to my friend Joey do is first show on Y-Rock on XPN and it made me miss the good old days of music first radio. He deftly mixed new and old – Arcade Fire with Fugazi; Mumford & Sons with Sleater Kinney. I’m not sure why so many stations seem to think that you can play new or old – but the two should never mix. And when they do play old – it’s the single and not the deep track.

Joey’s show is on Mondays from 3 to 6 PM and you can listen to it on the WXPN website, in iTunes radio, or download the WXPN app in the iPhone app store.

You can also send Joey requests on AOL IM at yrockonxpn.

If you like music that doesn’t suck – please click the Facebook like button under the title of this post to share with your friends.

New Michael Penn Video: Count of Pennsylvania

Speener — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 12:30:55 +0000

Two years ago, we were all riding a wave a hope for the future. Michael Penn wrote a songlet (his words) for my blog series about the Presidential election that was perfect for the feelings of the day.

Today that wave has receded, and in its wake it has left anger, hate, and apathy – so Michael has updated the song to reflect this day.

What will Count of Pennsylvania 2012 sound like?

Find Michael Penn on Facebook.

Love me some LaLa

Spencer — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 04:33:04 +0000

I just reviewed Lala over at SlyMiser. I know I’m late to this particular game, but Lala is still worth crowing about. Of course now that Apple has purchased Lala – everyone will be hearing about them. Amazon MP3 is still my store of choice, but I’m keeping my eye on Lala.

What do you do for music? iTunes, Amazon, Pandora, something decidedly less legal? Let me know in the comments section.

Top Albums of Decade (2000-2009): 1-10

Spencer — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 14:59:51 +0000

The top albums of the decade. This is opinion and for some reason 2005 was my favorite year of the decade in music. It shows in this list. I could listen to these albums, and only these albums, from now to the end of time and continue to find something wonderful and new in each one. The funny thing is that 3 of these albums had trouble getting released and another one skipped labels all together and decided to release it on the internet.

1	Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (2002) – Wilco The story of this album is amazing. That it had to be leaked to the internet because the label didn’t hear a single is amazing. Simply a gorgeous album – one of my all-time favorites, and this says a lot: one of Wilco’s best. My Favorites: Jesus Etc., Kamera, I’m the Man Who Loves You
2	Figure 8 (2000) – Elliott Smith At the time this album came out many of Smith’s fans thought this album was over produced. Compared to Smith’s previous albums, it was. This is also one of Smith’s best. Unfortunately it was his last before his death. My Favorites: Son of Sam, Wouldn’t Mama Be Proud, Can’t Make a Sound
3	Bachelor No. 2 (2000) – Aimee Mann - Another album that waited on someone’s desk because they didn’t hear a single. Fucking record execs are morons. My Favorites: Red Vines, Deathly, Calling it Quits
4	Extraordinary Machine (2005) – Fiona Apple Whoa, yet another album where the execs didn’t hear a single. Jon Brion stirred Apple out of a funk and produced album and then the execs “didn’t hear a single”. A joy to listen to. Brilliantly unique. My Favorites: Extraordinary Machine, Used to Love Him (Tymps)
5	In Rainbows (2007) – Radiohead Radiohead set the world on its head by releasing this over the internet, for free. It is their best album since OK Computer. It brings together elements of their best work of the past two decades. My Favorites: 15 Steps, Bodysnatchers, Reckoner
6	Stories from the City – Stories from the Sea (2000) – PJ Harvey I missed this album when it was released and now I get to rectify that mistake. My Favorites: W*es Hustle and the Hustlers W*e, The Mess We’re In
7	American Idiot (2004) – Green Day I never took this band seriously until this album. Full of angst and serious while maintaining their distinct sound. Took me months to realize how great this was. My Favorites: Holiday, Wake Me Up When September Ends
8	Back to Me (2005) – Kathleen Edward Three brilliant albums – I had a hard time figuring out which was the best, but after listening a few times, this is the most complete – and has the big songs. She will go down as one of the best. She keeps knocking them out of the park. My Favorites: In State, Copied Keys, Back to Me
9	Leaders of the Free World (2005) – Elbow I don’t get why people don’t know this band. They are THE brit pop band around today (outside of Radiohead that is). Start listening to this band. My favorites: Station Approach, Forget Myself
10	Andrew Bird (2007) – Armchair Apocrypha This album is truly amazing. The more I listened, the better it got. My Favorites: Fiery Crash, Darkmatter

That’s it. Thanks for indulging me. I finished in just enough time to start working on my best of 2009 list. Share your favorites and comments in the comment section.

The running list can be found here: Top 100 Albums: 2000-2009.

Top Albums of Decade (2000-2009): 11-20

Spencer — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 19:22:15 +0000

By definition all of these albums here are classics. To fit into the top 20, an album needs to be a constant play on my ipod or iTunes. These all fit the bill and are great from beginning to end (another requirement).

11. A Rush of Blood to the Heart (2002) – Coldplay – This is the last Coldplay album I can fully recommend. Containing classic songs like “The Scientist” and “Clocks”, this is the one Coldplay album that works all the way through.
12. Funeral (2004) – Arcade Fire – This album will probably rate higher on national magazines decade lists. Widely recognized as one of the best albums of the past 10 years – it’s worthy of all the acclaim. Another band following in the Neutral Milk Hotel path, this album has an epic feel to it.
13. The Woods (2005) – Sleater-Kinney – It’s crazy that this was the end of Sleater-Kinney. Each album they created was a masterpiece, and they saved their best for last. May not appeal to everyone – it’s loud and discordant, but in a way that works for this album.
14. MP4 (Days Since a Lost Time Accident) (2000) – Michael Penn – It’s criminal that Sony sat on this album, allowing it to slip into this decade. One amazing song after another. Songs such as “Trampoline”, “Whole Truth”, and “High Time” are among my all-time favorite Penn songs.
15. Delivery Man (2004) – Elvis Costello & the Imposters – This is the best of Costello’s most recent albums. Great duets, fantastic songwriting.
16. Plans (2005) – Death Cab for Cutie – From the opening notes of “Marching Bands of Manhattan” you know this will be a classic album. I’ve always loved non-traditional love songs, and this album includes the daddy of them all: “I Will Follow You into the Dark”.
17. Twin Cinema (2005) – The New Pornographers – A lot of the New Pornographers work has a similar sound – not in a bad way though. Very literate, fun, bouncy. This is my favorite of their albums – and more good stuff from Canada.
18. One Nil/One All (2001) – Neil Finn - This album is up there with anything that Finn recorded with Crowded House.
19. All That You Can’t Leave Behind (2001) – U2 – Part of me regrets putting this as high as it is on this list; it’s not on par with albums like Achtung Baby or The Joshua Tree. Then I remember seeing U2 in New York City’s Madison Square Garden merely a month after 9/11. This album meant more than notes on a page can convey. At least to me it does.
20. Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace (2007) – Foo Fighters – As much as I like FF’s The Color and the Shape, this is their masterpiece. Includes all the fun songs, the hard rockers, and the epics.

The running list can be found here: Top 100 Albums: 2000-2009