Thom Yorke - Feeling Pulled Apart By Horses/The Hollow Earth "12 (2009)

So these are two new songs from Thom Yorke that came out this week. They're pretty cool. I'm not sure if I'm totally blown away though. It doesn't really seem to me like he is breaking much new ground here--sometimes to me this sounds like what Boards of Canada would sound if Thom Yorke was their singer or something. That being said, the first track has a wicked bassline that sounds like it came out of some psychotic funk jam. The electronic percussion going on is also pretty interesting. Both songs are really sparse and hypnotic, and they really sound amazing in headphones too. So yeah, I'm not sure if this is really the bombest shit to ever happen, but I'm digging these two new tracks from Mr. Yorke. listen listen!

They Might Be Giants - s/t (1986)

So I've heard the name a million times, and I've been reading all about them for like 5 years or something now, but I literally didn't take the time to listen to them until yesterday. Again, I'm kicking myself because this album is fucking amazing and it's such a good time. It's all based in super catchy melodic absurd new-wave pop, but they jump between so many different strange styles. Almost every song is about 2 minutes long and it creates this kind of hysterical musical kaliedascope. I've been finding myself a little bit blown away by how great all the songs are, and at the same time laughing my ass off because every second of this, the very existence of this music is hilarious. It's just a goofy absurd good ol time, and you should hear it. If you like Ween, the Flaming Lips, Devo, or the Talking Heads like I do, I can pretty much guarantee that you will completely love this immediately. Silly, silly, silly. Infectious as swine flu.

AKRON/FAMILY

Through the ringing in my ears I've realized something--It's ALL about Akron/Family.

Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - Safe as Milk (1967)

Psychedelic delta blues art rock. I feel like I'm in the sixties rolling in the mud with rainbow colored skies swirling above me. This was Beefheart's debut album, and I think the fact that he is a monumental creative force and unquestionably influential figure in the world of rock is pretty damn clear upon your first trip through this album. Just check out that bassline on 'Zig Zag Wanderer', GOD DAMN! This shit is an all-around asskicking experience for your body, mind and soul. Get DOWN.

My Bloody Valentine - Loveless (1991)

My desert island album. This is by far one of the most intense and cerebral albums I have ever come across. It is a nonstop psychedelic powerhouse. Beautiful indie pop songs buried in a sea of swirling, crushing guitar distortion and cooing vocals. I feel like I am sleeping on pink clouds when I listen to this shit. This is most definitely one of those albums that you want to sit down and listen to all the way through. I see it less as a compilation of eleven great songs, but more of a 45-minute sonic soul adventure. 'To Here Knows When' is a personal highlight for me, where all the instruments and sounds blend so perfectly together into a swirling, trippy, acid haze of a pop song. I'll be honest this is not social music. I like to put this on and completely withdraw and disconnect myself from everything, everyone. The ecstasy that this music makes you feel is that sensation of feeling completely adrift, gone, lost. It's hypnotic and mesmerizing, and it is the indie rock, dream pop, psychedelic rock Holy Grail.

Lotus Plaza - The Floodlight Collective (2009)

I've been really loving this one for the past few nights. Lotus Plaza is the side-project of the Deerhunter guitarist Lockett Pundt, and if you listen to Deerhunter, you will hear the similarities immediately. The album to me sounds just like the way the cover looks, like you're remembering some happy childhood memory but it's all a bit hazy and glowing, and time has slowly started to wash away those little details. This album is excellent. Every song flows together into a colorful psychedelic haze with beautiful melodies and endless layers of reverbed guitars and vocals. I think the influence of artists like My Bloody Valentine, Stereolab, and Brian Eno are very much present throughout the album. If you're into stuff like that as much as I am, I'm pretty damn sure you'll dig this. I really love the way all these songs manifest themselves and develop. They usually start with one main idea that endlessly repeats itself hypnotically, continuosly building in sound and energy, spiraling up and up into a rainbow colored sky. I can feel time stretching out to eternity when I listen to some of these tunes, simply because of the way that they are constructed. And it's awesome. If you are feeling particularly thoughtful or reflective tonight, throw this on and let yourself drift into a dream. Dis shit feels good mang. Schwa

Ween - Chocolate and Cheese (1994)

From the sublime to the sublimely ridiculous. This is the greatest band on God's green Earth. But seriously, Ween has had an invaluable impact on my life and I think if you haven't listened to them, you are deprived of one the greatest things to ever happen to music since the cavemen started pounding their heads on the rocks. You may find them strange and bizarre, but the fact of the matter is, their music is the pinnacle of absurdist pop. No genre of pop music is safe from Ween's omnipresent musicality. Ween is straight up genius. Every song is a gem, every song is completely hysterical, and every song is so excellently constructed and well put together. What it comes down to for me is that Ween just makes you feel good. They make music that you love, by making fun and essentially reinventing the music you love. They'll make you laugh, and they'll make you cry, and they'll try your patience, but every second spent with Ween is a second well spent. Even though every album of theirs is different and unique, Chocolate and Cheese is definitely the most focused and is the perfect dive-in point for anyone new to their music. The joy is infectious. Let their ecstatically twisted music into your life and I promise you will start to feel the results. Long Live Boognish.