NEW MUSIC FOR OLDS #63
Dog Days Dog-Song Spectacular!
Happy Friday, ding-dongs.
Before we get to the tunes, a quick heads-up to anyone in New York City next week.
This Thu 8/22, Pete Dominick and I will be hosting a watch party for the final night of the Democratic National Convention. We’ll be providing commentary, chatting with guests and handing out goofy prizes.
Come hang out! Click here for tix/info.
With that out of the way...
I am once again awash in new music, so we’ll be doubling up on GOOD STUFF and nixing the bullshit this week. You read that correctly: six great songs. Actually, more five great songs and one song that’s…fine.
On the docket:
Jack White, revived
Romcom pop
An exciting new addition to my dog-song repertoire
A SUPER IMPORTANT ALERT!
A musical boot to the face
Vintage porno hold music
And, a nostalgic bone thrown to 18yo Chris Finnegan.
Let us begin.
GOOD STUFF
New folks, check out this Glossary of Terms.
Jack White, “It’s Rough on Rats (If You’re Asking)”
Listen on Apple Music // Listen on Amazon
Album: No Name (out now)
Nutshell: Jack White doing Jack White stuff, only better
Voltage: 7
Thoughts: No Name is (rightly) being hailed as Jack White’s return to his classic sound. Sonically, he meets himself halfway. Unlike White Stripes, there is actual bass on this album, but almost inaudibly low inn the mix. If you like midrange, do I have an album for you! Compositionally, White has torn things down to the studs, ditching most of the fussy try-hard energy he’s exhibited in recent years. Dude is at his best when it sounds like he’s playing the first riff that pops into his head. There are clunkers—to be expected, when you’re swinging this freely. But more often, No Name feels like lightning in a bottle. Enjoy this mediation on the travails of rodent-hood.
Pairing Suggestion: Bouncing around like a goon
NIKI, “Too Much of a Good Thing”
Listen on Apple Music // Listen on Amazon
Album: Buzz (out now)
Nutshell: Adult contemporary pop
Voltage: 5
Thoughts: I’m not sure how I stumbled across Indonesian pop songwriter NIKI, but I’m glad I did. Her stuff falls into that category I have, from time to time, referred to as “VH1 Classic pop”—breezy, low-impact soft rock aimed at adults with jobs, kids, etc. Think Sheryl Crow, David Gray, Meredith Brooks, etc. Stuff like this tends to get lost in the algorithmic shuffle, but there’s something refreshing about popular music that’s not screaming for your attention. There’s a lot of variety on Buzz, but everything goes down easy, like a glass of watermelon lemonade on a Summer day.
Pairing Suggestion: Soundtracking a romcom montage
King Gizzard & The Lizzard Wizard, “Field of Vision”
Listen on Apple Music // Listen on Amazon
Album: Flight b741 (out now)
Nutshell: 70’s Glam revival
Voltage: 7
Thoughts, Pt. I: Since 2011, Melbourne rock collective King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard have released 26 studio albums. An absurd number, hopping from psych rock to jazz fusion to death metal to synth-pop. They release music so often, I’d mostly stopped giving a shit—it’s a recognized social phenomenon known as Guided-By-Voices Syndrome. But I decided to click on King Gizzard’s latest and, go figure, it’s pretty damn sweet. I especially like “Field of Vision”, which evokes the British bubblegum glam of Slade and Mud. But I’m burying the lede…
Thoughts, Pt. II: I have been known, on occasion, to sing to my dogs. Griswold and Billy each have their own dedicated setlist, a mix of covers and originals. I won’t feign humility—it’s good stuff. That said, I’m always looking to tweak my repertoire. So you can imagine how thrilled I am by a song that ends with the band singing “I’M BEING A SILLY, I’M BEING A SILLY BILLY!” I mean, you could go your dog’s whole life without a surefire winner like that. To think, all these years I’ve been making do with a mangled version of “Wooly Bully”.
Pairing Suggestion: Giving the crowd what they want (treats and the occasional belly rub)
Given that Substack does allow six-way polls, we’ll break things into two groups. Don’t worry, I cleared this with the folks at Price Waterhouse Cooper.
You know, I usually phone in these calls for engagement. But this time, I’m genuinely asking: Tell me the titles/lyrics of your favorite dog-song.
Cat-songs are also (grudgingly) acceptable.
ALERT! ALERT! ALERT!
Forgive this interruption, but it has come to my attention that the band responsible for “Wooly Bully”, Billboard Magazine’s #1 single of 1965, looked like…this:
END OF ALERT.
You may now return to your regularly schedule newsletter.
GEL, “Mirage”
Listen on Apple Music // Listen on Amazon
Album: Persona (E.P. - out now)
Nutshell: Hardcore
Voltage: 9
Thoughts: Still trying to nail down why one hardcore band will kick my butt and the next nine bore me to tears. There seem to be three factors: 1) It needs to sound crisp—the noisier the band, the cleaner I want the production. 2) The band must groove or even, dare I say, swing. 3) If the vocals are screamed, the “singer” needs to mix things up, rhythmically. GEL checks all three boxes. It’s weird to call any hardcore song “hooky”, but it’s easy to imagine a teeming pit full of punchers and kickers shouting along with vocalist Sami Kaiser. My goal is go see one more real hardcore show before I die—it’s been 25+ years. And wouldn’t you know it, GEL is playing NYC tonight. Call it fate1?
Pairing Suggestion: Taking a boot to the face
BADBADNOTGOOD, “Best Left Unsolved”
Listen on Apple Music // Listen on Amazon
Album: Mid Spiral (out now)
Nutshell: Orchestral Jazz-Funk
Voltage: 5
Thoughts: BADBADNOTGOOD are a Toronto quartet with six albums of groovy funk-soul under their collective belt. But they’re probably best known for backing hip hop and R&B artists, such as Ghostface Killah, Kendrick Lamar and Tyler, the Creator. I vastly prefer them doing their own thing. This music rewards close listening, but it’s also suitable for a cocktail lounge, dinner party, or even as the soundtrack for your household chores. Why, on an 18-song album, would I feature a “bonus track”? Because I’m kooky like that.
Pairing Suggestion: Hold music in a vintage porno
Jane’s Addiction, “Imminent Redemption”
Listen on Apple Music // Listen on Amazon
Album: Imminent Redemption (single)
Nutshell: An un-terrible facsimile of a band called Jane’s Addiction
Voltage: 7
Thoughts: Look, this song ain’t great. But the first Jane’s Addiction’s first single with it’s original lineup in over 30 years is also not an embarrassment. It even evokes the band that once released two of my favorite albums of all time. Perry Farrell is 65(!) years old, so temper your expectations. But with original bassist Eric Avery back in the fold, they’ve ditched the smarmy strip club vibes of their post-heyday and returned to the tribal, shamanic sound that felt once felt so electric. “Imminent Redemption” isn’t on the same tier as, say, “Mountain Song” or “Three Days”—not even close. But it sounds descendent of that band and I’m calling that a win!
Pairing Suggestion: Taking what you can get
Your judgement is once again required.
Top three romcoms: Go.
And with that, we bring NMFO #63 to a close. As always, I thank you for your support.
Go sing to your dog.
There’s an 80% chance I’ll wuss out.
"Jessie" by Paw
"Dogsong" by The Be Good Tanyas (this one is sad)
"Dogsong 2" by The Be Good Tanyas (this one is sadder)
“Mirage” is that thing you need every once in a while to keep yourself healthy.