Better Than Ezra: How Does Your Garden Grow?

Ghost Park Edition

I enjoy turkey, and when the lighted star on the hill behind my parents' house comes on the evening of Thanksgiving, the holidays feel like they are fully underway. With less than a month to go before said feast day, I'm struck by how much I have going on with family, friends, faith and fancy. This blog seems a luxury about luxuries. Is is wise to pursue, or do I just give thanks that I can?

This CD is subtitled "a series of nocturnes". It would is enjoyable in the fall; An October album, but it fell just after. Worth listening to, but not necessarily while you eat turkey and green-bean casserole. Maybe while you drive to visit relatives, as the sun sets under a desert sky. There is a whimsical, dreamy quality to the songs that wasn't present on Friction, Baby. However, "murder" returns as a theme, which makes me wonder about ever visiting New Orleans whence these boys hail.

Speaking of New Orleans and nightmares:

Better Than Ezra: Friction, Baby

True Ninja Track Edition

As I said in my last post, I love this album. Of the three BTE albums I own, this is by far the best and my favorite. It was introduced to me by Jay, who picked up the cassette at a roadside convenience store on a whim while taking a cross-country trip with some friends. A happy accident.

The production on this CD is great. I love the songs "R3wind", "Speeding Up to Slow Down" and "Long Lost". Just good pop. They'd just installed a new drummer, and I had the chance to meet him when I saw BTE at the late great 'Canes when they were touring for this album. I got in for free, because when I went down to buy the tix at the El Cajon Tower Records (RIP), the teller told me he had some that he wasn't going to use, and hooked me up, no charge. I don't remember the guy's name, but I was a frequent customer in those days. It was a good show, and one of my favorites at the time. Which is why I went back and bought Deluxe. Which was a mistake.

This CD also has a true hidden track, located in the negative space before the first track, "King of New Orleans". It's kinda jokey, and not really worth the effort to hold down the back button to find it if you've heard it once, but I like that it's there. Later pressings of the CD, I understand, just tacked the track onto the end of the disc. I guess the original placement was eventually too obtuse for even BTE's tastes.

Better Than Ezra: Deluxe

Murder Pop Edition

From the song Porcelain

Well I wish I could kill you,
savor the sight.
Get in to my car, drive into the night.
Then lie as I scream to the heavens above.
That I was the last one you ever loved.
Yes, your skin is like porcelain.

Oh. Kay. BTW, this is not a Heavy Metal band.

You know, I'm not really a fan of this CD. It has their hit "Good" on it, and the first song, "In the Blood" is pretty OK. But there's something about the sound that is too sparse, too basic and bland. The cover is terrible. It looks far from professional. Certainly not a deal breaker, but it just suits the contents, sadly. I'm a huge fan of their second disc, and bought this one, hoping for more of the magic. Didn't happen. Could be the old drummer. Could be the garage-band production on songs that need more depth-of-field, so to speak. Could be the psycho lyrics.

There is a hidden track at the very end, where the lyrics are screamed in a heavy German accent; "Pork unt beans mit sauer krauten!" What in the world?!

Here they are with their "good" drummer.

The Beta Band: The Three EPs

Elitist Snobbery Worked On Me Edition



Eu comprei-o usei-me na Amoeba quando RC excursionou até San Francisco, e eu estava tentando estar fresco. Isto lembra-me de algo como Slint ou Tortoise, com mais amostras e sensibilidades do musica pop. As canções são pouco umas demasiado longas e I' a VE saltou-os quando vêm acima no wife' s iPod. Escutando através do tudo isto outra vez reacendeu minha apreciação, mesmo que eu sentisse como um chump para ser introduzida a ela com esse filme.

Translation from the Portuguese
I bought it used at Amoeba when RC toured up to San Francisco, and I was trying to be cool. This reminds me of something like Slint or Tortoise, with more samples and pop sensibilities. The songs are a little too long and I've skipped them when they come up on the wife's iPod. Listening through the whole thing again has rekindled my appreciation, even though I feel like a chump for being introduced to it through a movie like this.

Belly: King

Crab, Pin and "Mock, yeah!" Edition

Don, Fisher, Sofa, of Hearts, of Clubs, of Diamonds, of Spades, of the Hill. Follows: Roc-, Loo-, Ba-, Snac-, Frac-(Battle Star Galactica), Jo-, Smac-, Hac-, Bac-, Suc-, Jac-, Rac-, Wrac-.

See Also: Diamond, Larry, of Pop, of Fools, Rain, Sun, Lizard. Precedes: -ly, -dom.
Used in a sentence: I found this CD to be lac-.

Belly: Star

Seriously, Stop Feeding It or You'll Need a Belly Band Edition

Tanya Donelly did not count on Google when she named her band Belly. Look up "belly band" sometime. Welcome to America, circa 2010.

Circa 1993, I had just graduated from high-school, grunge was on top, hipsters emulated hippies, and "Feed the Tree" was on MTV's "120 Minutes". MTV still played music on their station then, not just on the website. Feed the Tree was a decoy, and much more "rockin'" than anything else on the album, which is mostly dreamy, slightly ethereal-folksy drivel. Except for "Slow Dog", which is kinda poppy, but has a riff that seems so contrived and overused as it transitions into the chorus, I can't give it a pass. Were it not for Shandree, this CD would have been gone long ago. But if the wife likes it, we keep it. I'm fine with that. It's kept me off the streets.

Bela Fleck and the Flecktones: UFO Tofu

Bottle Rocket Edition

In Wes Anderson's premier film, Bottle Rocket, the character of Bob played by Robert Musgrave is a hapless rich kid, whose friendship with Owen Wilson's Dignan and Luke Wilson's Anthony leads him into shenanigans. Bob is a supporting character, but essential to the plot, as he is ultimately the guy who gets the most hosed by the inane caper Dignan leads them into. Bob has an older brother, who ridicules him relentlessly, even though they are well into their late twenties and maybe early thirties in the film. This brother, played to jack-ass perfection by Andrew Wilson, is named...Future Man.

The "drummer" for Bela Fleck is named Future Man, too. What a strange coincidence. Bottle Rocket's Future Man is an irate turd who thinks he's above childish enthusiasm, while Bela Fleck's Future Man is a pirate nerd who thinks he's above playing actual drums.

Definitely check it out, if you haven't. Bottle Rocket. Not Bela Fleck. (Victor Wooten on bass is amazing though, I'll concede...)