Summer of Sam (Famolaro) OST: Track #9

Exhibit C
by Jay Electronica
Act II EP (2010)

So, My dude, Mr. Adam West (THE FIST PUMP BLOG!) says to me...
"Yo, Dude. You gotta come to this Jay Electronica show in Red Hook, It's gonna be fuckin' legit"


to which I replied...
"Who the Fuck is Jay Electronica?"


No thanks, bro.
I'm gonna stay home & 
go to sleep early like a chump.


A poor decision by yours truly.
here [link] is a quick video of my missed opportunity. 


Hands down, this has to be
the best rap song of the summer. 
Nothing I've heard can even touch this. 
the Billy Stewart "Cross My Heart" sample is absolute fire. 


Seriously, Jay Electronica might be 
one of the top 10 rappers out right now. 
his flow is diverse & his quirky style shines through.


...And I let his free show slip by because 
My dumb ass was two weeks late to the party.


You win this round Adam.
But I'll be back...


"Exhibit C" -- Jay Electronica [download]

Summer of Sam (Famolaro) OST: Track #8

Art House Director

by Broken Social Scene

Forgiveness Rock Record (2010)

Oh boy...
I've been holding back on this one 
since i started this summer playlist.


Even before my hair-brained idea to create my summer playlist,
I was thinking about discussing this new album
And with the possible exception of Gorillaz' Plastic Beach,
I don't think I've listened to another album more than Forgiveness Rock Record.


Art House Director features many of the signatures 
found in songs that I tend to enjoy.
- Huge Vocals
- Hook-laden Choruses
- Creative Verse Structure


and of course....

a Killer Horn Section.


I was talking to this guy at work 
who was asking me what I've been listening to lately.
I told him I'd been listening to alotta Broken Social Scene
& momentarily, he looked at me like I had a third eye (blind)
before saying he has no idea who they were, but I should check
out the new Keane album.


In my younger, more "agro" days, 
I would have gone off for 25 minutes on why Keane should be 
systematically broken down & sold on the black market
in exchange for small amounts of yellow cake uranium.

...I guess we all mellow out as we get older.


"Art House Director" - Broken Social Scene [download]

Summer of Sam (Famolaro) OST: Track #7

Local Joke

by Neon Indian

Psychic Chasms LP (2009)

Sorry about the break in the action.
New job started last week & i'm just starting
to settle back into a comfortable rhythm.


This song is kinda hard to escape in the new apartment.
...Not that I'm complaining, this song is fiery.


First off, Neon Indian snuck up on me.
I actually owned the entire album for a few months
 before i ever got any farther than Deadbeat Summer
or Should Have Taken Acid With You [link].
But Psychic Chasms is mine field of pop gems,
just waiting to get stuck in your head all day.
Local Joke is probably the tightest track on the record,
it's short & sparkling & over too soon. 

...like a sparkler!




Really, Sparklers are like the 
"Fun-Size Candy Bars" of the firework world.
They're small & surprisingly satisfying
plus, you get a whole bunch in a pack.


Psychic Chasms is like a pack of sparklers.
It's short & entertaining & sparkling
and, even though it's over before it begins,
you can just light another one up & start over again.


Local Joke - Neon Indian [mediafire]

Summer of Sam (Famolaro) OST: Track #6

Stay Close
by Delorean
Subiza (2010)

Great Scott!!!
1.21 Gigawatts!?!?


(Why don't you make like a tree & get out of here?)


Whoa, Doc... 
You're telling me you made a time machine...
out of a Delorean?


Ok, now that that's out my system 
I can actually get down to business.
I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting much from this album
but so far, it's my sleeper album of the summer.
It's got like... a hazy, space-y feel
that runs through the music.




You know what?
I went to see the Yankees/Red Sox game last night
and I'm completely exhausted...


so I'm gonna stop...


just watch the video, it's a good fuckin' song.


"Stay Close" - Delorean [download]

Summer of Sam (Famolaro) OST: Track #5

People
by Silver Jews
American Water (1998)

Well... You knew it would happen eventually.
the first Stephen Malkmus
track of the Summer.


Silver Jews was a 1998 collaboration 
between Stephen Malkmus & David Berman.
Based in New York City, Silver Jews recorded
6 studio albums between 1998 - 2008,
before disbanding in 2009.


Musically, You know what to expect from Malkmus.
Clever lyrics, love-or-hate kinda voice, and it's all there as usual.
It's Berman's voice however, that makes the harmonies work.
Berman has that dusky, gravelly voice 
that carries this song during the chorus (and one sick verse)


The song itself has a kind-of stoney, sloppy vibe.
I can imagine sitting on my roof on a hot day, 
drinking a tasty UC...
watching the heat rise off the tar...


lazy day music.


and that's what this song is, really.
"lazy-day" clumsy guitar over straight drum beats.
with fantastic lyrics from two different, yet distinctive voices.


I'm sure you're gonna see a lot more of Malkmus
by the time this playlist is complete.


...so stay tuned.


"People" - Silver Jews [mediafire]

Summer of Sam (Famolaro) OST: Track #4

Home

by Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros

Up From Below (2009)

Not to say it's a bad album...

cause it does have other decent moments. 

but, Home is far & away the best, 

most perfectly crafted song on Up From Below.

Really, the song is a perfect storm of everything 

that the band is attempting to be.

the call & response vocals are spot-on

and the female vocalist (Jade Castrinos)

honestly, makes this song for me...

but i'm not finished, yet. 

It's always easy to think about home.

even if you don't love where you're from. 

the idea of returning home 

to all the people & places you've left behind

somehow makes everything better, 

even if it only for a brief moment in time.

Everyone has something that makes home feel like home.

Maybe it's family, friends, lost loves.

really, it's all about familiarity.

i'll just get to my point I guess.

When you're not at home with me, 

I don't really feel like i'm home. 

there. I said it.

(but you already knew, didn't you?)

"Home" - Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros [download]

Summer of Sam (Famolaro) OST: Track #3

I Can Change

by LCD Soundsystem

This is Happening (2010)

LCD Soundsystem will be playing 
at my house, my house.


...for most of the Summer, anyhow. 

If I had to choose one song that I assumed

was going to become the anthem of Summer 2010,

this would have to be it.

This is also the first song on the playlist
that was actually released in 2010.
Thus, I wanted to add this before it becomes "played-out"


...and I have a feeling it will.


Truth be told, this entire album is littered with potential
summer-time fireballs ("Dance Yrself Clean", "Drunk Girls").
But personally, I find James Murphy to be most appealing
when he's lovesick & writing bittersweet, 
devastating electro-pop gems.
Wile the memorable synth-line, open-book lyrics &
 surprising danceability, I Can Change could easily become 
the 2010's version of Someone Great [link]


I'm always pretty impressed with Murphy's lyrics.
He has that subtle combination of snarky & ernest that is hard
to pull off without sounding like a prick, but somehow when
he tells me "he can change", I honestly believe him.

"I Can Change" - LCD Soundsystem [download]

Summer of Sam (Famolaro) OST: Track #2

Can't Hardly Wait
by the Replacements
Pleased to Meet Me (1987)

There are at least 2 distinctly different versions of this song.
- a grittier, more stripped-down verson on Tim (1985)
- the bombastic, super pop, horn-laden version on 
Pleased to Meet Me (1987)

So why did I chose the second one?
well, i'm glad you asked...

killer horn section.

yeah, that's right
the road to my musical heart
is paved in sweet, sweet horn sections.

This will become a recurring theme for my playlist.
As the Summer progresses, you will start to see
a steady increase, per capita, of songs with horns.

the Replacements were based out of Minneapolis, Minnesota,
which just so happens to be one of my favorite cities to visit.
(Cold as balls, but great people, music & food)
Minneapolis was also home to some of my other favorite pop bands,
such as Semisonic, Motion City Soundtrack & Hüsker Dü

There's a reason that everyone loves this song.
And It's probably got alot to do with
Paul Westerberg's signature raw-throated vocals, 
because this really may be his vocal masterpiece.

...Seriously, his voice gives me goosebumps.

"Can't Hardly Wait" - the Replacements [download]

Summer of Sam (Famolaro) OST: Track #1

Too Many People 
by Paul McCartney
Ram (1971)

I'm building my summer playlist one song at a time,
and I'm going to share it with you, so ya'll can join along
...If you're into that kinda thing.


So, this is the first track...




Now, Question. 


Which member of the Beatles do you like the most? 
Do you like the dead ones?
 or the live ones?


Which the exception of a few hardcores who just can't 
get enough of George Harrison's relatively hit-or-miss later catalog
(...I refer to these people as "Harrisonites")
most people will pick either John Lennon or Paul McCartney.
(Sorry, Ringo. Luv U!)


I'm not disputing that John Lennon was 
one of the greatest song writers off all-time
but his body of work outside of 
the Beatles is limited. 


Good, just... limited.


On the other hand, Paul McCartney has 
more music than I care to think about sometimes.
Between the Beatles, Wings, his solo career, 
his weird classical albums, his Michael Jackson duets 
& his highly-overlooked electronica duo, the Fireman [link],
Macca has a bigger catalog than almost any artist alive today.


it's not too hard to figure out that Too Many People 
was indeed written about the very recent (at the time) 
& highly personal, Beatles break-up.
It's interesting to hear it from McCartney's side,
He sounds like he had grown tired of Lennon's persona.
As well as the fact that John "had been doing a lot of preaching".
(Oh, if you wanna hear Lennon's response, go here.)


I love this song.
Too Many People has to have one of my 
favorite choruses in McCartney's entire catalog. 
If Paul McCartney knows anything, 
he knows his way around a vocal harmony.

Paul McCartney - Ram (1971) [link]