Spotify Me Part 11: The Strange Playlist of Charles Dexter Ward

Spotify Me Part 11: The Strange Playlist of Charles Dexter Ward

Mark’s Discover Weekly playlist for the week of 11/9/15

We can all be forgetful sometimes. For example, I took my wristwatch on a dive this weekend. We went to 50 feet, with a normal average wristwatch. Luckily its rates to 3 atmospheres, and actually still ticks! It’s still on time! IT really is the best wristwatch I have ever purchased. There wasn’t a point to this story; I just wanted to tell you about my watch and how great it is.  We also saw paddlefish in the water, which was pretty cool. I wanted to mention the fish also.

I’m still getting a great deal of game sound tracks or covers of game sound tracks. But it’s very on and off, meaning that some weeks there are only 5 or 6, and some weeks over half of the songs are of this category. But there are always a few winners, so I will continue to fight with the program. However, if next week is as bad, then I may just do an album review. There was an album that came out recently that I really want to talk about. Heck I might review it either way. No promises, the future is uncertain.

The Amazing New Electronic Pop
Sound of Jean Jacques Perrey
Vanguard Records

The Mexican Cactus – Jean Jacques Perrey

At times you can find a song that has the ability to cheer you up in some pretty gloomy times. This is most definitely one of those songs. The tune is light hearted, cheerful, and just a little goofy. But the history of the song, or rather the creator of the song, makes this music a little more interesting. In the early days of electronic music, Perrey was an important pioneer in the genre of electronic music. After leaving medical school to join the field of music, he developed new processes for generating rhythms, and became ne of the first moog musicians. For me, that makes this song, and other songs on the album, a look through history. When you listen to this song, you get an idea for where electronic music came from. You can see what’s changed, and what’s stayed the same. Even if you don’t like this song as much as modern electronic music, its still cool to see how the genre developed.

Bangs
Universal Music

Terrible Things – Brick + Mortar

A fast paced drum beat and distorted vocals immediately set the mood for this song. The song is urgent in sort of a worried paranoid tone. The artist portrays his worry in the song, o how he often dreams of doing “Terrible things.” And the image on the album art also inspires a certain amount of apprehension. It’s a really cool look into madness, or the fear of madness and what lies in our own heads. There is angst in the music that is reminiscent of early punk, but with a faster more modern feel. Sometimes the rhythm can feel a little disjointed which threw me off at first. However, I still like this song, and the ideas it plays with.

Keep It Going
Fat Wreck Chords

Tired Bones – Mad Caddies (Fat Wreck Chords)

At times, this song reminds me of something that Squirrel Nut Zippers would play. However, this is not to say Mad Caddies don’t have their own unique sound. The song has some strong, excellent elements of swing music throughout, but throws some pretty hard rock elements into the mix. This song carries a good amount of energy, speed, and emotion. But at the same time it communicates a narrative that shows exhaustion and fatigue. I have heard Mad Caddies before, but never took a serious look into their style. However, after writing this, I am more interested in looking at the rest of what they have to offer.

Little By Little
Phonographic

Wine, Women and Song – Harvey Danger (Phonographic)

You have most likely heard a song by Harvey Danger before and don’t realize it. And by that I mean, you have almost certainly heard one specific song called Flagpole Sitta and just never knew who sang it. Until this week that was the only song I had ever heard by the band, and had always kind of thought of them as a one hit wonder. However, they do have plenty of other music out there, including of course, Wine, Women and Song. This song is just a bit quieter, but is by no means a quiet song. It’s a sad song, if not a little bitter. Unlike Flagpole Sitta, which is more of a loud anthem, this song is a bit of a lament. But in then end, the band manages to keep a consistent style as they venture into different territories. And now that I know there is more music by this band out there, I might be listening to it quite a bit more soon.

 (The album artwork in this article is not owned by the authors of this blog, but by the producers of the albums themselves.)