Ryan's List-Worthy from Last Year List: Non-Podcast Rock Music

Other than spinning the fine music heard at Radio@MU, I haven't consumed much music in 2007. Early in the year, I cut demos to some of the Elan Vital soundtrack. In the middle of the year, my band The Society of Gloves recorded a couple of tracks. At the end of the year, and continuing to this day, I've been tracking music for the Elan Vital score. Instead of listening to new music, I've produced music and grooved to a bunch of classics released in previous years.

Anyhow, here's a sadly brief (but great-sounding!) list of three good songs released last year. They're not necessarily my top favorites from 2007, but each song comes from some of the new albums I spent a great deal of time to listen last year:

1. Radiohead "Reckoner" | Amazon.com MP3
BAD. ASS. You can't get anymore badass in 2007 than Radiohead's In Rainbows and the way it was initially for sale - and Mutiny Universe broke the news (at the same time as virtually everyone else), too! "Bodysnatchers" was initially my favorite track off the album, that is, until "Reckoner" got under my skin! Here's a video of a live performance of "Reckoner," and it is IMPERATIVE that you concur that the song is badass:

2. Eddie Vedder "Hard Sun" |
Into the Wild is a fantastic soundtrack/solo album by Ed. I haven't seen the film, but I've heard great things about it. I'm also partway through the book of the same name, and my brother (who read the book before me) says great things about it. Ed has written great songs, and continues to do so - but this selection is a cover song, which goes to show that Ed can consistently record great cover songs, with or without Pearl Jam: "Love, Reign O'er Me," "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away," and "Last Kiss," to name a few. Here's a music video that promotes the film:



3. Billy Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlin "United States" | Amazon.com MP3
On paper, they're called the Smashing Pumpkins, but since they recorded the album Zeitgeist and their latest EP American Gothic with neither the two other original or the three new Pumpkins, they might as well stick to calling themselves BC/JC. Anyhow, Zeitgeist was a better-than-average comeback album that has been tainted by typical record company greed: Multiple versions and album colors, as well as Ford commercial airplay. Ironically, the previous Pumpkins album, Machina II, was a loud-and-clear F-YOU to the record industry, as the band gave the music away for free online. On any other list that involves new Pumpkins tracks, I would have written "Bring the Light" instead, but "United States" is a nearly-ten minute heavy rock epic, and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin recorded the drum track in ONE TAKE and NO CLICK TRACK. Supposedly, there's one flubbed note in there, but I'll take a Jimmy Chamberlin flubbed note any day to my flubbed notes! Here's a live performance of the song:



So that's my short list. It's definitely missing a lot of good stuff from 2007, so I guess I'll have to catch up in 2008.

Pearl Jam "Live at the Gorge" (7 CD Box Set)

Let me first say that this isn't so much a review as it is a fanboy's reaction. I'm writing this as I'm listening to Pearl Jam's Live at the Gorge. So if you don't care about the music created by Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, Ed Vedder, and Matt Cameron - with "Boom" Gaspar - stop reading now. If you're just a casual fan (i.e., only like the radio singles, which only date from 1991 to 1994), this is not for you. No worries, it's cool that you're digging on "Jeremy" everytime it shows up on your randomized iTunes playlist. Anyway, bottom line: Only two kinds of music listeners should pick up this live box set.

The first kind are fanboys and fangirls, people who are members the Ten Club...like yours truly. In fact, I'm listening to my Ten Club copy, which (like last year's self-titled album) doesn't have any UPC bar codes. That itself is cool. But even more so is that I received this box set on Saturday, when the official release date is tomorrow.

OK, so the three concerts presented in this box set took place at the Gorge, in George, WA. Yes, I said the Gorge in George, Washington. There's a gorge in George Washington. (I should've ranted about that in my podcast). Like I said, you really need to be a better-than-average Pearl Jam fan to enjoy this because the whole thing is a sing along. It's like church, but with Ed's warm baritone and Mike's blues-infected leads and Stone's riffage (and vice versa for Stone and Mike) and Jeff and Matt's groove. Boom's Hammond B3 drives it home. The first songs on the first disc are definite sing-alongs: "I Believe in Miracles" (Ramones cover), "Small Town," "Off He Goes," "Low Light," "Man of the Hour," "I Am Mine"...etc., etc., etc.

There's this vibe because of the outdoor venue. The open air reduces any sort of reverberation, with all sounds leaking into space (if that were possible). So far, it feels totally different from the show I went to last year (at an indoor venue). Anyway, this particular show was recorded near the end of summer, so you can almost feel the heat. And it's freakin' hot right now, so it's perfect. I can't wait to listen to the July 2006 Gorge shows because that's when it was a really scorching summer. So I'll stop writing this non-review and continue listening (whilst I work).

Oh yeah, the second kind are people who are open to music and open to more Pearl Jam. You might not like it in the end, but at least you took a chance. Well, you can always go to http://www.pearljamlive.com/ to listen to a plethora of other shows (and thus save some bucks).

This is not much of a review. Sorry. Go to www.pearljam.com/goods for the special fanclub package, otherwise pick it up elsewhere.

I said in my podcast (which I'll post soon) that it's great to be a twentysomething/thirtysomething teenager. And it is. Next time I'll write another non-review, of the Halfing Pumpkins' return to form - Zeitgeist.