Guilt

It's not really fair to Trapped Under Ice to refer to them as a guilty pleasure, because they're a pretty great band. But I can't help but think of them as a little bit of a guilty pleasure.

And I can't be bothered to dig out the discs for photo purposes. So thank you Reaper Records for letting me yank the images from your site. Not that I asked.

(Lazy.)

Trapped Under Ice - Stay Cold. Reaper Records. New.

Trapped Under Ice - Secrets of the World. Reaper Records. New.

Newer Sounds

I enjoy the way last.fm links Teleman to the composer of a similar name.

Teleman - Cristina. iTunes.

First Three

Travis played recently. I didn't go. Maybe I should have. I really enjoyed them live when I saw them many years ago.

I'm current with their releases. But nothing has ever stuck with me like the first three albums.

Those first three albums are a pretty solid one, two, three and bands go. And aging well.

Travis - Sing (Single 1). amazon.com. Used.

Newer Sounds

I liked what I had read about H. Hawkline.

I didn't like what I heard after purchasing H. Hawkline.

But now that I'm giving it a re-listen, I like it a lot more.

Perhaps I wasn't in the right frame of mind when I first gave it a listen.

It happens.

H. Hawkline - Black Domino Box. iTunes.

Old

In retrospect I probably should have stuck around This Is Hardcore and watched Kid Dynamite. But I had seen them a lot in the past. And I'm old. And it was late.

Which is a terrible excuse because I think they're a few years older than me.

Kid Dynamite. Mike. Used.

Newer Sounds

I didn't know much about this band, but looked forward to the pre-order arriving in my iTunes based on the Rough Trade blurb I had read.

It did not disappoint. I look forward to buying up everything else out there.

Childhood - Solemn Skies. iTunes.

Go Vegan!

In retrospect, Culture is one of the better "vegan conscious" bands of the era. Although I listened to them far less than Earth Crisis, Chokehold, Birthright, Raid, Vegan Reich, etc.

In fact, I listen to them a lot more now than I ever did then.

Culture - Born of You. Mike. Used.

Newer Sounds

I tend to assume all Pennsylvania hardcore is from Philadelphia or Wilkes-Barre (except for Brother's Keeper of course). I know it isn't. But that didn't stop me from assuming Hounds of Hate were from Philadelphia when I first saw that they were from Pennsylvania.

Wrong.

Western PA.

Hounds of Hate. Painkiller Records. New.

Video Time Sink

I'll often watch Die Antwoord videos over and over. I'll sometimes lose an hour or so doing so.

I'm currently obsessed with "Baby's On Fire."

Die Antwoord - Ekstra. amazon.com. Used.

Newer Sounds

Originally I was going to write about how I don't own a lot of music from Belgium. Then I realized I have a pretty sizable collection of Front 242 and more than a handful of Belgian hardcore releases.

So now I'll add some indie rock to the list.

Bed Rugs - Blinds. iTunes.

Hundreds (OK, Maybe Not)

Every time I think I'm catching up on these posts, I scroll down my "acquisition list" and realize a have well over one hundred entries remaining.

But enough of that.

Even though I don't listen to a ton of Converge anymore, I can still remember the feeling of excitement I had hearing Petitioning the Empty Sky for the first time. "The Saddest Day." What an opener.

Converge - Petitioning the Empty Sky. Mike. Used.

Newer Sounds

I'll put this under the "newer sounds" banner, despite being from 2011.

It's French. Always a sucker for anything French. Although not as much of a sucker as I am for anything England/Ireland/Scotland/Wales.

But the French things tend to be more interesting.

Lescop. iTunes.

Mother Russia

I recommend diving into the interesting world that is Russian pop. My knowledge is limited, but since deciding to seek it out a year or so ago, I've come across some really great acts. Tesla Boy is one of the best.

Tesla Boy - Rebecca. iTunes.

Newer Sounds

The end of The Libertines created a void in my life. This is the kind of band that fills that void.

Palma Violets - 180. amazon.com. Used.

Together

I really hate that one of the "big" Bryan Ferry hits packages is a Bryan Ferry and Roxy Music greatest hits.

Not that it really matters as I attempt to buy up the studio discographies of both. But I am not a fan of a band/solo combination greatest hits.

Bryan Ferry - Boys and Girls. amazon.com. Used.

Newer Sounds

I've only recently "discovered" this band. I posted one of their singles a few months ago.

They already have a second album out! Here's the first.

Concrete Knives - Be Your Own King. amazon.com. Used.

Poor Form

I'm usually pretty good about pre-ordering Erasure and Erasure-related releases. I was about two years late on this one.

Andy Bell - Non-Stop. amazon.com. Used.

Newer Sounds

That lovely mix of dark, poppy, post-punk.

The vocals are classically eighties. This is a good thing in my world.

Night Engine. iTunes.