I get really excited about new music all the time-- sometimes it is a bit overwhelming. There is literally so much out today that I don't even know what to talk about. The writers strike may be over, but you can obviously feel its effect when you look at the movies out now in theaters. I have never seen it look so bad. I never thought I would actually choose to go see movies like the Bank Job and 21 simply because there was nothing else out there. But there has been no strike in the music business-- the albums just keep on coming out and I am not even getting time to spend with the albums I love. I have to move on to other ones and leave my favorite albums from weeks ago behind. I like to think that I have good taste when it comes to music, but I seriously have been liking a lot of albums lately. This week some of our old favorites have fantastic new albums. The Breeders have a new album out called Mountain Battles. I will forever love Kim Deal because of the Pixies, so she can really do no wrong. This album has grown on me and I find myself liking it much more that their last one. Nick Cave also has a new album out today. I have not had much time with it yet, but I do like it so far. I really can't stop thinking about seeing him at the Hollywood Bowl. The show is like a year away but I am already getting so excited. The Hollywood Bowl is one of my favorite places in the world. And Nick Cave + Hollywood Bowl = magic. Trent Reznor decided to do a completely instrumental Nine Inch Nails album. It is called Ghosts I-IV. I listened to it today and I sort of forgot it was Nine Inch Nails halfway through it. I do like myself some instrumental music and there were some really great songs on it, I am just not sure I really get it yet. I did find myself wishing for those Trent Reznor vocals on many of the songs. I just need to give it some more time. The Drift has an amazing all instrumental album out today called Memory Drawings. The album sounds similar to their label mates Explosions in the Sky. I know Wumpscut is not for everybody, but I found myself obsessed with their album Bone Peeler from a couple of years ago. I seriously listened to that album over and over again. Sometimes I need some hard and intense dark music in my life. And Wumpscut don't ever let me down.

Here is an idea that goes into the “Why didn’t I think of that?” pile:

This is from exclaim.ca. Pretty funny as well.

Nick Cave Named Rough Trade's Inaugural "Counter Culture Icon" 
2/29/2008 By Brock Thiessen

In efforts to give hipsters their very own Walk of Fame, Nick Cave will be stopping by London’s Rough Trade East shop on Monday to be sworn in as its first “Counter Culture Icon.”

Sources from shop today told Drowned in Sound that Cave and his no pussy blues would leave his “prints” at the renowned record shop, marking the first of many enlistees to participate in the fame campaign. The Bad Seed will then reportedly be “hanging out in the store,” presumably kicking against the pricks.

Thus far, Rough Trade has remained tight-lipped over the names of future Counter Culture Icons. But we can make some educated guesses. Perhaps be Morrissey? No, the concrete would be too “icky.” Mark E. Smith? Well, maybe he’d leave a fresh butt.

And just in case you were curious, Hollywood’s Walk of Fame now has more than 2,000 five-pointed stars featuring the names of celebrities, human and fictional, according to Wikipedia. The first star was awarded February 9, 1960, to Mrs. Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, star of the 1996 film Even If a Hundred Ogres...

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Yeah, I get the irony, (oh, the English are soooo ironic!) but don’t you think Amoeba Hollywood should have their very own “Counter Culture Icon Walk Of Fame?” Amoeba could hit 2000 selections in one day.

1977: Crime & the City Solution formed in Sydney. It seems that almost from their inception they were cursed to never be spoken of without a mention of famous Australian Nick Cave. Their original line-up included vocalist Simon Bonney (the band's only permanent member), Don McLennan on drums, Harry Zanteni on guitar, Phil Kitchener on bass and Dave MacKinnon on soprano and tenor saxophones. Simon Bonney, whilst born in Australia proper, had grown up on a remote farm in Tasmania where his family grew wheat, barley and opium poppies before he moved to Sydney.

Shortly after their formation, Crime & the City Solution relocated to Melbourne and the line-up changed with Dan Wallace-Crabbe taking over guitar, Kim Beissel replacing Dave MacKinnon, Lindsay O'Meara handling bass and Chris Astley joining on keyboards. The band recorded a handful of demos and some live performances are available; the recordings are interesting. Simon Bonney's distinct, moaning vocals are immediately recognizable. The music sounds very much of its time- kind of a dark, brittle post-punk with saxophone that makes it sound vaguely Roxy Music. It's a bit raw but miles ahead of the contemporaneous Boys Next Door, who aside from their cover of the Young Charlatans "Shivers" were pretty awful. [Note: If you have the Young Charlatans' demos, please let me know]

The Boys Next Door, by their second album, 1980's Birthday Party, pursued (thankfully) a sound very different from the bland predecessor of the previous year, Door, Door. Now the band careened through a cacophonous terrain owing a lot to The Cramps while taking a bit from Crime & the City Solution's post-punk take on The Doors as well. The Boys Next Door moved to relocated to London, signed to the 4AD record label and got huge. Meanwhile, Crime & the City Solution remained silent. I'm tempted to make the analogy of the story of Hedwig and Tommy Gnosis but, to be fair, The Birthday Party were an amazing band with a lot of talent... and a lot of ego. Rowland S. Howard, The Birthday Party's guitarist and writer of some of the band's most amazing songs and Nick Cave disbanded the group in 1984.

Catch Dirty Dancing @ the New Bev Sat Nite and then Dance Dirty and catch something Sun Nite @ Part Time Punks (the Echo) w/ Kid & Howie!!!

Hello again to my blog. I have really missed you! Hopefully I have not lost all my faithful blog readers and friends. I am now officially back.  Seriously, I have missed you. But I have been a bit busy moving my life all around again and moving back to Los Angeles...again. I did this same move about 5 years ago. From San Francisco to Los Angeles. I think I might just like moving. I know for a fact that I do really enjoy packing and unpacking my stuff. And I have actually thought about being a professional packer or unpacker. I know most people really hate it. I do hate the driving of the U-Haul and the moving boxes part of moving. But I do sort of love everything else. I did get really lucky in finding a new apartment and I already had the job part taken care of. So the hard parts were out of the way. But I got my internet hooked up just the other day and I am now back and ready for the blogs. There has been a ton of music and DVDs that I have wanted to talk about already. After a very slow and boring end of the year in releases, there are finally exciting things coming out again. So anybody who says that there is no good music this year, is just not looking hard enough. I think all my favorite bands got together and decided to all release new albums in January and February. At least they spread them out a bit. The Magnetic Fields put out another fantastic album on January 15th called "Distortion." Cat Power put out another album of covers called "Jukebox" on January 22nd. I really do love those covers and this is yet another beautiful album from the beautiful Chan Marshall. The next week was a new album by Xiu Xiu called "Women as Lovers." I think I fall more in love with Xiu Xiu every year. This album grew on me really quickly and I have been listening to it over and over every single day.