What's in your CDP tonight? the minority report

Brock van Wey aka Bvdub - All is Forgiven (courtesy of You Tube)

Computer audio last couple of nights....

1) Daniel Lanois - Belladonna

2) Mum - Finally We Are No One

3) Sunlight Ascending - All The Memories, All At Once

Check out "General Fuzz".
Heard Comfort Zone from Soulful Filling on Pandora. He has 6 albums available for free download. Donations accepted. Link below to the site. Enjoying his music.

http://www.generalfuzz.net

This listening session was inspired by the documentary Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage. It was also very much inspired by my life long close friend Nathan T. These four albums are all highly worthy of a listen and the first two have very good recording quality (I wish the last two possessed that as well). I have never purchased “2112” but should as it is a much needed album to connect “Hemispheres” and “Permanent Waves” below.

Rush – A Farewell to Kings

Rush – Hemispheres

Rush – Permanent Waves

Rush – Moving Pictures

BTW Ghosthouse, I did check out Dwight Twilley. That song was pretty cool as well as a few others I sampled on the Y**tube. Great call on this band.

William DeVaughn - Be Thankful for What You Got

Curtis Mayfield - SuperFly Soundtrack

Dwight Twilley Band - Sincerely (Pure pop confection with a brain. Don't get why Dwight wasn't a bigger star)

Sampled several things on You Tube that were mentioned by Pokey. Listened briefly to Dntel & Evax but spent more time with Aninha Mission by Piano Overlord (Scott Herren). This is interesting and bears returning to.

Ultimately listened to an upload of Beck's "Sea Change". I know this has been out a while but it was a first listen for me. It might not be typical Beck but I REALLY liked it.

Afternoon session:
John Cougar Mellencamp – Scarecrow. This album and the song “Minutes to Memories” are what finally got me to take a closer look at JM. This is easily his best effort to that point in time.

James Newton Howard and Friends – self entitled. Fun synth-rock instrumental record. Very nicely recorded. First heard it in Italy used as a demo disk for high-end equipment.

Kirsty MacColl – Electric Land Lady. Just the first few tracks, especially Track 1, Walking Down Madison.

Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories – Tails. Great record. Has the hit “Stay”.

Tracy Chapman – self entitled. Great record with the mega hit song “Fast Car”.

Morning session:
From LA with Love – This is a various artists collection of electronic music. Not great, but good.

Piano Overlord – Aninha Mission – electronic music from Scott Herren or maybe better known as Prefuse73. Both of his efforts under the Piano Overlord moniker are great.

Pokey - as ever....
A few things there new to me. Only have "Humans" by Cockburn. I will check out Speechless. Also Dntel and Evax are new for me.

Notec - thanks for posting. So far only had time to check out Vuelveteloca. Found Telekinesis and Jinete Galáctico on YouTube. Like them. Sort of reminds me of Ramones. To me, these guys "get it"...about the essence of R&R, that is.

Listened to many discs on Saturday. Courtesy of my BDP 105 they were:

Phil Keaggy - The Master and the Musician
Phil Keaggy - Beyond Nature
Bruce Cockburn - Speechless (instrumental!)
Dntel - Life is full of Possibilities
Evax - Parking Lot Music

I can attest to the albums noted above in Ghosthouse's last three posts. All good stuff, some great! It is so cool to find new music; it stimulates the soul.

Check out the scene at Deep Elm Records. Complaining about the stranglehold big biz got on music? Strike a blow against the empire. But be forewarned, you might not hear a single....

Deep Elm Records

Vuelveteloca - Jinete Galáctico - (BYM Records - BYM007)
Föllakzoid - Föllakzoid - (BYM Records - BYM002)
Dead Skeletons ‎– Dead Magick - (A Records - AUK103CD)
Harlan Pepper ‎– Take Out A Twenty And Live Life To The Fullest - (Six Shooter Records ‎– SIX081)

Forgot to add El Ten Eleven to the previous installment on this thread.

More than one night's worth of digital listening here...
Thanks to Pokey77 for the Rasinhill recommendation. Found "Nameless" on YouTube. From that upload stumbled onto some interesting post-rock stuff by Moonlit Sailor ("So Close to Life"; "Colors in Stereo") and Sunlight Ascending ("All The Memories...."). [FWIW - Subscribe to 9eCn3 aka 9EricCN3]. The gem, though, might be iambic2, "Under These Stars We'll Sleep Again".

In addition, I can't recommend strongly enough "Unleft" by Helios or "Copia" by Eluvium. I wish more were able to hear and appreciate this music.

I busted out with Josh Rouse "The Happiness Waltz". Great mellow Sunday morning coffee music.

Well, I had some time to myself to do some listening today and found myself listening across many genres. Was fun for sure.

A friend loaned my some speaker cables and so I pulled out a couple of known quantities for reference purposes: Pinback – Blue Screen Life (still my favorite by them) & Hugh Masakela – Hope. This is an SACD and it is one of the two or three best recorded CDs I have in my collection. Worth the purchase based on that criteria alone. Plus it has the ten-minute jam Stimela.

Signal Hill – self entitled. If you like instrumental post rock, this is one you may enjoy.

Switched to female vocalist: Robin Holcomb – Rockabye. Still wonderful after 22 years; moody, introspective, with excellent musicianship. Then on to JJ Heller – Only Love Remains. Largely acoustic and great songwriting.

Finally moved on to the experimental genre with Vernon Reid – Known Unknown (not as good as Mistaken Identity) and then to The Books – Thought for Food. This is a pretty strong effort by them.

After all these CDs, the only thing I wish I had was more time. I’m not sure I’m in the minority on that though!

Last week I listened to a few records by Mum: Summer Make Good (my favorite), Finally we are No One, and Go Go Smodr the Poison Ivy. They are a great band. Check’em out.

The Charlie Hunter Quartet - Natty Dread

In the digital domain courtesy of YouTube it's Kirwan/Welch era Fleetwood Mac with "Future Games", "Heroes Are Hard to Find" and now, "Bare Trees".

Hey Ghosthouse, ya, Sky Blue Sky is probably my favorite too. I really like Unlikely Japan. That can be found on the documentary DVD too and is quite an excellent live studio recording of that song.

Just one new CD to add here. It is another band I found on Pandora - Signal Hill, their self-entitled record. I just received it in the mail earlier this week and had time to give it a play a night or two ago. All instrumental and very fun to listen to. Was disappointed that it was not better recorded though. Lacks bass and is a bit veiled. I would still highly recommend this six-song EP though. I have also played it in the car and found it to be quite road worthy.

Hey Pokey - good to hear from you. Just recently spent a few evenings in a row listening to Wilco. Sky Blue Sky is probably my favorite by them. Their recordings are well produced too...good sonics.

Finally got some time carved out to do some listening. Was a great afternoon.

Started off with two new purchases based on Pandora listening:
Pinback - Nautical Antiques. I have three Pinback releases and this is my forth. It is pretty cool but would be more for the complete-ist rather than as a first record.

Death Cab for Cutie - Plans. This was a fun listen with some pretty great writing.

Then I pulled out an old friend. Wilco - Sky Blue Sky. This is a real classic. One of their best albums IMO.

Finished with Radney Foster - See What You Want to See. If you like AltCountry or Country, you'll probably like this one. A very strong effort.

I have not listened to any CDs in the last few days. But my CDP also provides access to several internet sources like Pandora. Lately I have been having much fun listening to the following channels: Prefuse 73 (glitch hop) and Pinback (amazing alternative) on Pandora. Because of this I have discovered more bands great-sounding bands such as Signal Hill, Lazlo Hollyfeld, Modest Mouse, Bonobo, El Ten Eleven, and have been reminded of Explosions in the Sky. I will be buying a few CDs by some of these bands as well.

Ghosthouse, I did listen to World Party. Most didn’t really grab me but the song “Hollywood” does remind me a bit of The Big Dish. I also listened to Andy Summers' "The Golden Wire" on YouTube. It’s like ambient accompanied by several instruments including his awesome guitar playing. Too bad it is out of print (as you probably know). I’ll try to play some on Pandora as well. Just listened to some Radio Head on YouTube as well. I like the album you recommended. The singer reminds me some of Jeff Buckley. Kinda also reminds me of the 70s band Television, a good thing. –Weird fishes is pretty awesome. I’ll be looking into this band more.

Wahoo. No more moderation wait for me!

The Master & The Musician - Phil Keaggy c.1978. Great music and well recorded.

The new Hugh Laurie CD is awesome!

Kenny Burrell-Special Request
Shelby Lynne-Just A Little Loving
Carmen Mcrae-Try A Little tenderness

Hey, Pokey - good to hear from you. Always enjoy checking out your music choices. Happy New Year to you too. I did check out Robbie Fulks and The Big Dish. Can definitely see the talent in Robbie Fulks...greatest unknown songwriter kind of a thing. Big Dish...didn't do a lot for me at the time. Like many things, might be worth another try before completely closing the door. I remember when Lyle Lovett released JJR. Don't own it and only heard one or two tracks from it. Might be worth further investigation.

Been pretty busy and finally got around to listening to some shiny discs. The first was Robert Earl Keen – Gravitational Forces. This one is in HDCD and sounds great. Not his best effort, but fun nevertheless.

Next up was Lyle Lovett – Joshua Judges Ruth. Fantastic album and if you love Lyle, you probably already know this one. I heard Lyle play a song from this album, North Dakota, on the radio here in LA many years ago. I was on the way to work and it so moved me that I was all emotional but in the best way, being touched by the music. Lyle’s passion was amazing.

Moved on to Vigilantes of Love – Welcome to Struggleville. This is one of their stronger efforts and is from way back, 1994. Great listen.

Cibelle – The Dried Shine of Electric Leaves was in the CDP next and this is a well recorded disc with some neat arrangements. Really like this one.

Ended the session with Younger Brother – The Last Days of Gravity. This was a Ghosthouse recommendation that I purchased a several months ago. The more I listen, the better it gets. Just the way I like it.

Ghosthouse, I’ll have to take a look at Wondershare sometime. Just been pretty busy or out of town. It has been a good busy though. Happy New Years!

World Party's "Bang" and then "Goodbye Jumbo". Haven't listened to these in a long time. Forgot how beautiful Karl's melodies can be. Glad to be reminded.

Andy Summers' "The Golden Wire"

Radiohead's "In Rainbows". Wish all recordings sounded this fantastically good.

Windham Hill Winter Solstice samplers.

Pokey - Thanks very much for taking the time to explain Sonos and check out the music I suggested. Agree with you about "A Winter's Dub". I think I listened to about 15 sec of it and got bored pretty quick. The stuff in the Modern Classical mix by Chronaut was way more emotionally involving to me. I've listened to it repeatedly. I'm a subscriber to Pandora too...between it, YouTube and lately MixCloud - not to overlook the recommendations from A'gon members like yourself - I'm getting exposed to a lot of different music. Another tip for you...check out something called "Wondershare" (assuming you aren't already familiar with it). My bro-in-law turned me on to it. I used the free video downloader for a few months and finally upgraded to their "AllMy Tube" product. It let's you download music videos and then covert them into various audio formats including WAV. They have another product, "AllMy Music" that purports to do the same - but audio only - from any streaming video OR audio source. Might be something you and others reading this thread will be interested in.
One again - I wish you and your family a very MERRY CHRISTMAS.

Ghosthouse – Sonos is a wireless music system. Yes, you can use the “Connect” box to integrate the Sonos experience with an existing stereo system. But what I’m doing is simply just using a Play 1 to play music from one of the many, many streaming providers like Pandora. I use a Play 1 to do this because I’m interested in the wireless aspect of it so I can have music in other areas of my home. All you need to make Sonos work is any of the speakers (Play 1, Play 3, or Play 5; can have up to 31 speakers in the network), a Bridge, and a tablet or other device that can be used to wirelessly control the system (can also control it with a PC or Mac). You connect the Bridge via a cable to your Router, plug speaker of choice into the wall, press a couple buttons, wait 10-20 seconds and then you are in business. I have mostly just used Pandora so far and am having fun; you can also play music on your hard drive or NAS. What’s really cool is you can place the speakers around the house and as you have more of them they set up a mesh network since they all have a wifi device built into each speaker. No drop outs, no problems. To get started with music, open the Sonos app, then a music app, like Pandora, then search the name of a favorite band and select the icon. Then it will play one song by that band and then after that it will start playing songs from other artists that are similar to them. The sound quality of the Play 1 is pretty good for a standalone speaker and I just like that I can have music in other parts of the house. Right now, Sonos is having a holiday sale and they will throw in a Bridge ($49) at no charge with any speaker purchase. So I spent $215 for a Play 1 with free Bridge and $140 for a Samsung Galaxy Tab 3.

I have finally had the chance to listen to Chronaut's "Modern Classical" all the way through. Pretty good stuff. I am now listening to “A Winters Dub” by lowlight mixes. Less interesting than Chronaut. But the Mixcloud service is pretty cool. I’ll see if it is available on Sonos. -I’ve moved on now to Chronaut's “Ideal Moment” and really like it so far. Have also listened to Helios and like it even more because it has a few more layers going on, making it more interesting for me. I also feel the same way about Eluvium. -Thanks for the recommendations Ghosthouse.

Hey Pokey - glad you are finding time to listen. Others (Tboooe?) have mentioned Sonos. I am curious what that is. I looked at their website and am guessing it's the "Sonos Connect" that is meant. What does that do for you?
Is it better than streaming from a laptop; e.g., USB out to USB converter to DAC to pre-amp/amp?

I will check out Big Dish & Robbie Fulks.

If you get a chance and as is convenient, do let me know what you think of any of the recordings I mentioned - but especially those found in Chronaut's "Modern Classical" mix. Helios & Eluvium are also worthwhile.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU AND ALL.

The Big Dish/Satellites - Excellent early 90s rock. Didn't much care for the first two Big Dish records, but Satellites is, well, quite the Dish!

Robbie Fulks/Let's Kill Saturday Night. Excellent Alternative Country record. Very well recorded and the performances are passionate.

Ghosthouse - I finally pulled the trigger on Sonos and have listened to much new music but haven't gotten to your last recommendation yet. I should have some time this week as I've three days off. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Helios' "Unleft"

Eluvium's "Copia"

...locally digital thanks to YouTube & Wondershare

Last night was:

The new Billie Joe Armstrong + Norah Jones-"Foreverly" (songs of the Everly Brothers)...EXCELLENT duets! Wasn't sure these two would work, but it is really nice.

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds-"Live From KCRW"

Pokey - Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours as well. No problem on the MixCloud/Chronaut "Modern Classical" recommendation. There is a LOT there. That one mix and another by Lowlightmixes, called "I Fell Asleep at My Desk" (really) - have opened up a huge "vein" of new music for me esp., Loscil, Jasper TX & Irezumi (the "composers"). Hope you get some downtime for music soon.

Very gratifying to hear you are enjoying the thread.

In a non-ambient vein, been enjoying various videos of The Band on YouTube. Found good uploads from a 1983 concert they did in Tokyo (post-Robertson). Ordered the CD as a result. 30 years ago and that music still sounds fresh and wonderful to me.

Been quite busy and not had many chances to escape and listen. Finally got the chance this Sunday afternoon and went to my less often listened to Rock section and picked Big Country - Come up Screaming! What an excellent two-CD collection of live hits. If you like Big Co. you will love this one.

Ghosthouse - I have barely scratched the surface of the last recommendation you made. Hopefully in another week I'll have time to spend listening to new music. Thanks for thinking of me. I am still really thankful that you started this thread some months back. - Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

Excellent taste Stevecham! I was just listening to them on MOG.

Streaming my Brian Jonestown Massacre station from Pandora One

Mark Almond

Tonight was:

Antigone Rising-"From The Ground Up"

The Bodeans-"Best Of"

The New Pornographers-"Together"

Hey Pokey - good to hear from you. Hold ups while waiting for a moderator to clear a post can be frustrating…but no problems. Glad to hear what you are listening to. My system is in dry dock as it were, so listening with headphones off my Mac Air and mainly YouTube though I did also just recently find something called "MixCloud" which is where that Chronaut suggestion is located. Turns out he, Chronaut, (a Lithuanian, if I recall) is not a composer - at least I don't think so - but has put together and uploaded different "mixes". So far, "Modern Classical" is the one that hooked me most immediately. Actual artists used in his mix are noted so this provides another multi-branched path to more possible music. Among categories or key words, I do see "glitch" as per your fav Prefuse. I've been doing a LOT of sampling/dabbling although I did also spend a good bit of time listening to some early solo Joe Walsh, "Barnstorm" and "So What" among others. Pretty sure I already told you I bought "Blue Screen Life" and Information Retrieved" by Pinback. Like both but IR especially. OK for now. Ciao.

Well, I posted about 24 hours ago and not sure if that post is going to make it here since Ghosthouse has posted seemingly after I posted last night. This moderated post checking is killing me. Anyway, I digress.

So, today I listened to the following: Tycho – Dive. It was a recommendation from Ghosthouse and I’m finally starting to get it after a number of plays. I really like ambient and don’t have many in this genre so I’m glad to have been led to another cool band.

Then I listened to Younger Brother – The Last Days of Gravity. Another Ghosthouse recommendation. Also taking plenty of listens to get acquainted with but it has been a fun process.

Pinback – Blue Screen Life. I’ve actually listened to this one today and last Sunday as well. This is an incredible record. I just can’t seem to get enough of it. And it is superbly recorded as well.

Ending up the night as I type this is Pinback – Information Retrieved. This is their newest release and it is not as immediately accessible as the one above, but a great production as well. Really, just a real breath of fresh air for me.

Ghosthouse, I will go give a listen to the link you’ve left for me. Thanks. BTW – Still trying to work through some listening of the Varese piece I just purchased. It is Arcana/Ameriques/Ionisation conducted by Pierre Boulez. Hopefully it’ll grow on my.

And yes Ghosthouse, I’m still listening. Just hate the fact that when I post here on the Gon’ that every post is moderated and takes so long to go live. That really takes away from the continuity of the conversation. Thanks for all the great recommendations. And thanks for starting this thread. I really am enjoying it.

This link is for Pokey77 if he's still listening (and anyone else with similar tastes). Check out Chronaut and "Modern Classical", in particular.

http://www.mixcloud.com/Chronaut/