Anyone Can

By the X-teens. No, not what you are thinking. This is from the early 80s in Chapel Hill. The X Teens were a great new wave band that I saw many times. One of my favorite songs of theirs was Venus. My claim to fame is shouting out "Play Aphrodite" at a concert. Kitty, the bass player and one of the singers, laughed and introduced the song as "Aphrodite."

I have their EP on vinyl. Two copies actually. I need to get their full length cd. Really fun music, get yourself some the legal way.

crack this cd?

I am finding this cd intriguing. I am not sure if I really like it yet, but I keep trying it out. How is that for a muted endorsement? part of the trouble is that the bass gets busy and congested on my home and car system. This is no surprise in the car, but the home setup usually gets the bass fine. Listening to it yesterday with the eldest daughter, the bass was undefined and indistinct. There is lots there as the bassist plays hard, loud, and uses lots of double stops, but I keep wanting to hear it better.

So I am unconvinced, but I am still going back for another listen. The music is heavy metal, but it is, again, interesting. Check it out, try the crack the sky website which has cool graphics and mp3s. But be aware, the lower fidelity mp3s are easier to listen to than the cd because of the lossy compression. Weird that.

Here is a video, because it only makes sense to give you a taste of the music. Enjoy and rock out.

fruity but dry

Really, as weird as it is using fruity and dry in the same description. I will try most beers. Chili beer is quite good, I even enjoy the pruney notes of an aged big alcohol ale. But most fruit beers are a some times thing for me. This beer is just good and I can always pick up a six. It is a wonderful summer beer, and goes great with spicy dishes.

The pic above shows a lighter yellow than I pour at home. There is not much foam to speak of. The base beer is an American wheat ale with no weird or interesting yeast notes. Pretty straightforward in fact. But oh my the apricot! You smell a bit, taste a bit, then comes the after taste. Mmmmm. It is on the fizzy side, but you can slam these if you are not careful.

So be careful, and savor it slowly.

Cans?????

Fat Tire Amber Ale. In cans. No joke!

Is it as good as Fat Tire in bottles? Well, not really, it is a different tasting beer. Can conditioned they say, and who am I to argue with or second guess the fine folks at New Belgium Brewing. Nobody.

Fat Tire was a favorite beer when I was in grad school in Denver, so I was stoked when it became available in the South East. That was in glass of course. I simply had to get a 12 pack of the cans when I first saw them. I am currently sipping, who am I kidding, guzzling one now. The beer feels thinner in my mouth, and it has more of a tang than the original, but I love being able to pop a can.

I have not done that much since Denver spoiled me and turned me into a beer snob. So I can pretend to pop a Schlitz and enjoy a Fat Tire. You should too.

Joe Jackson

An obscure album by Joe, this has none of the New Wave passion of the first two records he put out. It has a pervasive reggae and ska beat, but it is Joe writing the lyrics. Side two is so great! (I have the vinyl.) It starts with Crime Don't Pay, a bit of noire and lounge. Then Someone Up There which would have been at home on "I'm The Man. Battleground is social commentary to a beat, and Biology has a bit of a punchline. Pretty Boys is pure ska with some melodica thrown in, and finally Fit looks at outliers from false dichotomies. Really. And it rocks, well, except One To One which is a ballad.

How does it sound? Really OK. Some of the songs are practically mono, no that there is anything wrong with that, but don't expect room filling sonority on the tune Beat Crazy. Instead, it is punchy and crisp. There is a lot of compression used, especially on the faster numbers. The bass playing by Graham Maby is great, but you certainly do not need a subwoofer to enjoy all the bass this recording has to offer. Not that I felt cheated on any of this, it is mixed to be an exciting, punchy recording, and it delivers. My copy is an A&M original, perhaps the CD option from 2007 gives you a bit more bass, but I cannot vouch as I see no reason to pick up a digital version.

Joe is the man, and this record is one you should own.

But here is a taste to see if you agree.

After A Nice Bath

After Bathing At Baxter's was one of yesterday's listens. I was ripping the mono Sundazed vinyl to the computer and got to listen to it twice, once as I ripped, and once as I edited out the clicks and pops. I was familiar with the song Saturday Afternoon/Won't You Try, but the rest of the record was new to me.

Released in 1967, this is a woolly, hippy record. It is uneven, raucous, and a lot of fun. The songs sound as if they were recorded with a lot of spontaneity and freedom, and that seem appropriate for 1967. Grace Slick sounds great, she soars. There is not TOO much Marty Balin, which is good for me as his ego maniacal statements over the years turned me off of his singing gifts. To try to be fair, Young Girl Sunday Blues is a good song, and well sung by Marty.

The playing is so much fun, it has that wide eyed herewegowonderwhatwillhappen approach that much of the best music from the era has. OK, the 9 minute jam is not really my cup of tea, I prefer more structured music, you know, tunes and songs, but who cares. Part of the joy is that the band was willing and excited to release this type of record. A Small Package Of Value Will Come To You, Shortly is a hoot, and reminds me of some of the stuff that Zappa was doing with voices around this time. It is not the kind of thing I will choose regularly, but I will smile when it comes up on shuffle.

The Sundazed mono is clear and was well pressed. There is a lot of slam to the bass when I turn the record up enough. There were a few pops and clicks, but nothing too distracting. I may have an older (but not original) pressing of this record in the stacks, so I will check out the diff between the two mixes. I understand that the original mono was rather rare.

If you are the type to enjoy LSD hippie music, then this is something you must check out. I got the record on sale for about $12, and consider it a very good purchase. Here is a little taste, but do not expect great sound, just a tease.

The Source

What a beer! It is a Pilsner, arguabley the original pilsner. Made from the soft waters in Bohemia, it is a wonder of hops. Not really balanced, it is hard on the hops, but not one dimensional like some American hop monsters. The beer is a golden yellow, the photo above does it justice, and it has some sweetness.

Sadly, the beer is too often skunked. There is a huge difference between a pristine and a poorly stored example of this brew. But a good pour of Pilsner Urquell is fresh and satisfying. More hops than mass market ameribrews, and it goes great with pizza or spicy foods.

I get this beer several times a year, often when I am not sure what I want to purchase. In that way, it is a bit of a stand by beer for me. Give it a try and let me know what you think.