Schemin’ all the way…

 

It’s been six years since my last sElf fix, or having the chance to share the room with the studio magician Matt Mahaffey. No doubt this chance to be reunited is significant; take sElf out of the musical equation and shit just isn’t the same. Possibly even catastrophic, musically speaking. This Saturday is the reunion of the act that shifted everything for me. It’s the beats, the heavily textured, complex pop tapestries, the ingenious word play sElf has kicked out over the years that has lead us all to under 48 hours in Nashville. Short duration or not, like Matt never wasting a second to perfect pop, we’re about to embark on a trip where every second is lived. Hard. It’s just a suggestion, but we’re about to turn it up to 20…

Matt’s rendition of They Might Be Giant’s ‘Ana Ng’ leaning heavy on the keys and the “sweet simplicity”…

Best of ’12 in Three Albums…

Even though MiS came, went, attempted a consistent comeback, then faded, music was at the forefront of my day. Never a moment where it didn’t play a part: keeping the mood light, bringing the vibe up a few notches, holding me up as I had to trudge, entertaining my debauchery, etc.

The abundance of music continued. What stayed with me over the course of under 12 months was only a few records. Like every year, no matter what your palate is, a shit ton of records were released; to some, many were worth your time; for me, only three will still be spun heavily in 2013 and definitely beyond.

3. Nick Waterhouse :: Time’s All Gone

The mid-20s dapper gentleman knows a sound. He possesses the know-how to concoct pieces that could be reminiscent of a simpler time; don’t equate simpler times with a period where the music doesn’t make you want to jump up and sway in perfect, sweaty time, all while wearing a huge grin across your face. Rookie of the year.

2. Divine Fits :: A Thing Called Divine Fits

Groove, vocal deliveries wrought of passion, melodies and bass lines for days. Only a sprinkle of what four seasoned musicians can potentially bring to the drawing board. Forget the lame “super group” term; that phrase is thrown around for bands with staying power of a record. Divine Fits, based on their exponentially strong chemistry on stage and on record, are about to become your favorite band after their follow-up to this expertly pieced together LP.

1. Local H :: Hallelujah! I’m a Bum

A soundtrack, in theory. A record orchestrated around maybe your life, too. The record begins with a sound we know oh so well: the rattle of the L. From there, tears through like only the orignal “power duo” can. If ‘12 Angry Months‘ felt real and impassioned, ‘Hallelujah! I’m a Bum’ permeates with the same sincerity; let alone this time, Scott further proves that he is still in love with rock and roll and the city that bred them.

What Would You Have Me Do?

No surprise here, but even production legends claim Local H is the original “power duo”. Jack Douglas, who has a mighty impressive resume, listed the top 18 records he’s had his hand at. H’s decade old Here Comes the Zoo made the cut.

“It has the best ending of any album that I ever worked on. It’s so off-the-wall. You hear the finale, which is all of the songs played at once, and then you have the big stab at the end – ba-daaaaa! These stabs are repeated, with each one coming at an interval twice as long as the one before it. During this, you have these street sounds, and you start listening and getting into what you’re hearing, and then out of nowhere comes another stab – ba-daaaaa! I just love that. I’ve never done anything like it, and I probably never will again.

The finale is unstoppable: