Null’s Musical Obsessions 2023

By Null

My consumption of music has slowed down quite a bit. I have spent a lot of time listening to albums I already own and love, which I do not get to listen to enough. There are many. I primarily buy my music on CD, but this year I did buy quite a few new vinyl records. They are very expensive. It is ridiculous. I am no music snob or audiophile elitist. I bought a lot of cassettes too, and, yes, they still sound like crap. I still love them. Having said that, I do have a portion of this list that pertains to vinyl only. I heard some vinyl that made my jaw drop this year.

The world is a dark and mysterious place. I could not make it without music.

Wyse Blood, And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow (SubPop, 2022).

I came upon this album by chance, but immediately recognized that there was something unusual and unique about it. It has the warmth of songs I would hear on 1970s AM radio as a child, but it was clearly a modern record. The strange poetry in the lyrics seemed whimsical, but culminated into a barebones reality check for the times in which we live. This record is more than what it seems. “They say that the worst is done / But I think the worst has yet to come.”

Obituary, Dying of Everything (Relapse, 2023).

I bought this album on a whim. I knew nothing about Obituary and had never heard any of their previous albums. Apparently, they have been at this for almost three decades. It is like the perfect pop album in the sense that every single riff is killer—every single riff. The singer utilizes a bunch of different voices, which reminds me of HR from Bad Brains. From what I can gather, the lyrics are vague enough to be open to interpretation, even the more social, or political, lyrics. This album is so great that I was afraid to listen to any of their previous stuff, because they might not be as good. I will tell you one goddamn thing; I will be getting the next one. I fucking love Dying of Everything.

Scuba Drivers, Scuba Drivers (1986-1989) (Nineteen Something, 2016).

I first heard a song by this French punk rock band on a Nineteen Something Records compilation. Eventually, I bought the album that contains everything they recorded, including compilation tracks, EPs, live tracks, etc. The songs are so catchy one hardly notices the DIY recordings; the sound is perfection. 

LANE (Love and Noise Experiment), Where Things Were—Last Sessions 11/21 (Twenty Something, 2023).

LANE rose from the ashes of one of my favorite punk rock bands, Les Thugs. Like Les Thugs, they wrote songs about love, loss, life, and the prospect of a better world. I need this band. In their short six-year run, they released three incredible albums and one EP. Where Things Were is their third and final album, as they broke up this year. This last one feels the most emotional. It could be because I know it is their swan song. It is hard to believe that this was the remnants of a forthcoming album. They sound like a band at their peak.

Samiam, Stowaway (Pure Noise, 2023).

Stowaway is my favorite Samiam album. I listened to it a lot this year. See my review from earlier this year: http://tickleyourtaint.blogspot.com/2023/11/samiam-stowaway-pure-noise-2023.html

Billy Bragg, The Roaring Forty / 1983-2023 Box Set (Cooking Vinyl, 2023).

Billy Bragg released a new box set this year to commemorate his 40-year career in music. Though I have the vast majority of the songs included, it has been great moving though this 14 CD box set. I am reminded of how many amazing and moving songs this man has written. I love the romance, honesty, intelligence, humor, and sharp political commentary of his lyrics and their melodic and, very British, deliver. I also love his unapologetic socialist anthems. I love this man. A lot of love. Love, love, love.

The Highwomen, The Highwomen (Elektra, 2019).

I absolutely fell in love with this album. Everything about it is great. Everything.

Amanda Shires, Take It Like a Man (ATO, 2022).

I cannot remember if I came to this album or The Highwomen first, but I listened to this album quite a bit when I first bought it. Note: Amanda Shires is in The Highwomen. Take It Like a Man starts out very sexually charged, but it quickly turns into a heartbreaking and emotional rollercoaster. I am susceptible to these things. The song “Everything Has It’s Time” closes the record. It sounds like a perfect duet for Neil Diamond and Barbra Streisand to follow up “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers.”

Memoriam, Rise to Power (Reaper, 2023).

I have been a big fan of Memoriam for several years now. I fell in love with the guys first and the music second. They are old peace punks in a slow death metal band. I feel the sorrow of humanity in their strange tunes. I bought the deluxe box set for this album. It contained a cassette, purple vinyl, poster, comic book, digi-pack CD, and probably other stuff. Nerd stuff. 

Roger Waters, The Lockdown Sessions (Legacy, 2022). 

SoDak turned me on to this record. We sat together listening to it for the first time. My tear ducts opened several times, as I was so moved by these intimate recordings. Hearing “Two Suns in the Sunset,” originally from The Final Cut, just blew my mind. It has always been one of my favorite songs. This version is unbelievable. 

Louis Michot, Reve du Troubadour (Nouveau Electric, 2023).

Louis is the leader of The Lost Bayou Ramblers. I can only describe the band as a DIY, Cajun, punk rock, psychedelic folk rock band. There is a great documentary about them called On Va Continuer! The Lost Bayou Ramblers. My dear friend, Corey, loves them. He turned me on to Louis Michot’s solo album. It is all over the map in the most wonderful and mellow way. This album is a piece of diverse magic that chills me out. They lyrics are translated in the album sleeve. It is all good stuff. Get it here: https://louismichot.bandcamp.com/album/r-ve-du-troubadour. 

Jerry Cantrell, Degradation Trip: Volumes 1 & 2 (Roadrunner, 2023).

Jerry Cantrell is a really unique, weird, and unusual songwriter. It is still shocking to me that his band, Alice in Chains, ever became popular, as they became more uncompromising with every release. Clearly, they make music for themselves. If you like it, great. If you do not, that is great too. The same is true for Jerry’s solo albums. Degradation Trip was Jerry’s second solo album originally released in 2002. Volume 2 was difficult to get your hands on. Finally, this year both volumes were released together. It is a long movie in a very different world that somehow makes perfect sense to me. Somebody needs to sing about the darkness so we can head toward the light.

Superchunk, Misfits & Mistakes: Singles, B-Sides, and Strays (2007 – 2023) (Merge, 2023).

I always love it when Superchunk throw together a compilation of collected tracks. It makes for a great listen of diverse styles that really speak to their strength as a band. There are so many songs on this compilation that I discover something new every time I listen to it.

Alice in Chains, The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here (Capitol, 2013).

I have been listening to this album non-stop since 2013. I cannot quit. They layers are still unfolding.

Portobello Bones, Horma EP (Crash Disques, 1998).

This EP is great. It is by a French punk rock band somewhere between Fugazi and The United Sons of Toil. The lyrics on this EP come from testimonials from Amnesty International. I know little else about this band, but I want to find more of their stuff. I have a feeling it will not be easy.

Vanilla Blue, Sweetheart LP (Nineteen Something, 2023).

A bunch of old, melodic punk rockers come together to strut their stuff. It won’t blow your mind, but it is solid and full of instantly likable midtempo tunes. Quite a few tunes build up to an emotional peak. This is their second album. The first one is great too.

Ratt, The Atlantic Years (BMG, 2023).

This box set compiles the first 5 Ratt CDs, which were released between 1984 through 1990. Out of the Cellar was the first “metal” record I ever bought. Yes, they were part of the “hair metal” scene. And yes, their videos were stupid. However, the weird thing about Ratt is that their albums are really catchy. They wrote pop songs under the guise of metal. None of these albums will change your life, but they are good for a road trip or cleaning the house. I mean that in the best way. It is just fun.

The following albums pertain specifically to vinyl releases.

Grateful Dead, Without a Net (Live 1989-1990). 

I have heard this album off and on for two decades. It has personal meaning to me that would not mean much to anyone except those that were there by my side. When I put this expensive, fat piece of wax on the turntable I was blow away by the sound.

Billie Holiday, Songs for Distingué Lovers (1958 – Verve vinyl remaster 2023).

Verve put out this fat remaster. The band is incredible. The sound is mind-blowing.

John Coltrane Quartet, Ballads (1963 – Verve vinyl remaster 2023).

This album is up there with Miles Davis’s Kind of Blue. Even people who hate jazz like Kind of Blue. Dare I say this is a better album? I have listened to this quite a bit, but not nearly enough.

Miles Davis Quintet, The classic Prestige records on vinyl: Cookin’ (1957), Relaxin’ (1958), Workin’ (1960), and Steamin’ (1961).

Despite the different release dates, all these albums were recorded in 1956 with the same band. I have wanted to listen to these on a record player my whole life. I met my goal this year. Is there anything better than “My Funny Valentine” from Cookin’, or “It Never Entered My Mind,” from Workin’?

Smashing Pumpkins, Siamese Dream (1993).

I was a fan of this record back when it came out in 1993. It is the soundtrack of me falling deeply in love in a godless universe. I always thought the guitar sound was fucking incredible, not to mention the drumming. Billy Corgan’s voice always bugged me a bit, but I loved the lyrics and fell for the romance and beauty in the words. I bought the new remaster on 180-gram vinyl and it melted the house. Melted the fucking house. My girlfriend (the one I was falling in love with) and I were yelling things like, “Holy shit!”  to each other from different rooms in our house as the songs maneuvered through waves of sonic, heartbreaking, psychedelic, catharsis. We had it cranked. 

Concerts:

Willi Carlisle—I ran into Five-Inch Taint from this blog, and we took a picture with Willi.

Jawbreaker—I still have not fallen in love with their albums, but after seeing them live I get it.

Samiam—I talked to several members of the band before the show and gushed over their new album.

X—They really set the house of fire, as if they know their days are numbered.

Jade Jackson—I finally saw this great singer-songwriter live. It was in a bar and all she had was an acoustic guitar. SoDak and I loved every minute of it. I do not feel she gets the credit or support she needs. She should be touring with a full band and blowing the roof off of joints all over the world. Her albums are great. 

The Cure—I saw this concert with SoDak in Salt Lake City. I genuinely lost my shit and cried twice during the show. I first saw The Cure during the Disintegration Tour in 1990 as I was preparing to graduate from high school. Their impact was even more moving 33 years later. There were direct references to the state of the world and climate change in the first, unreleased, new song they played. Robert Smith looks ridiculous, but he is not the fool in the room. He never has been.

Books:

Most “rock” books bore me, even if I love the artist. None of it is on par with Dostoyevsky or Marxist Sociology, but I’ve been loving Greg Graffin’s Punk Paradox book. He is the singer and cowriter of Bad Religion songs. It is autobiographical, well written, and parallels my life in many ways. I can relate to it on many levels. Check it out.