PMS Issue three, edited by Dubravka Juraga and Snezana Zabic, brings you four Chicago poets, Nicolas Garcia, Tasha Marren, Luis Urrea, and Paul Martinez Pompa, and music by local bands Island, Tiny Manatee, The Embraceables, The Pralines, Hannah Frank Trio, The Injured Parties, as well as New York’s own Rebel Diaz (transplants from Chicago).
For poets and musicians out there: send us your poems and songs dealing with the state of things in the US and worldwide. We plan to pack at least one of our upcoming issues with political material. Speak up in your poems and songs and send them to chicagopms@gmail.com.
DOWNLOAD: pms3.ogg
1 Nick Garcia “Blue Island Bumsâ€
2 Rebel Diaz “99%â€
3 Pompa “Carbon Copyâ€
4 Island “Corporate Welfareâ€
5 Tasha Marren “April†“Ptarmigan†“Replicaâ€
6 The Pralines “Raphaelâ€
7 Nick Garcia “Daley’s Indiosâ€
8 Tiny Manatee “Immigrant Lawâ€
9 Paul Martinez Pompa “Bulletâ€
10 The Embraceables “Wanna Copyâ€
11 Tasha Marren “Mother Cycleâ€
12 Hannah Frank Trio “Pitch Black Eyesâ€
13 Luis Urrea “Valley of the Palmsâ€
14 The Injured Parties “American Comfortâ€
It’s the end of 2011 and it’s time to assess the damage. I prepared the list of 30 best new albums in this year, also a separate list of best short forms (singles, eps, downloads…) and reissues. We will cover this in our next three shows. We begin today with the best albums, positions from 30 to 16. Top 15 will be presented in our next show. So, start today and find out which one is the best album next week.
Folks, one of the weirdest episodes ever here at the Little Lighthouse… There is a whole bunch of reissues these days with live music. So, we started off with the new live reissues of Lou Reed, Rolling Stones and Giant Sand. Twilight Singers have a new live album out, so we check out that as well. Our good friend Damien Youth reissued his studio album Sunfield on vinyl. It’s a lovely double LP. And then we played the new band for Chris Eckman from Walkabouts, called The Frictions, which he put together over in Ljubljana where he lives these days. They played a cover of Suicide, so “naturally”, the rest of the songs were about suicide as an act, not as a band. So, very happy ending today… Check it out, but don’t do it.
Today’s show goes out to the two blues musicians which we lost within one single week (not in the same day as I said in the show). First Keef Hartley went away, English drummer who has worked in the late 60s with several different bands, most notably his own Keef Hartley band. Then Hubert Sumlin, the legendary Chicago blues pioneer left as well. It’s sad to see them go, so we remember their work in today’s show.
Today’s show is dedicated to the 80s new wave scene from Georgia and the South of the USA. Everything is peculiar in the South, so is the new wave scene. The direct inspiration for today’s show is the LP called Jericho Go, a compilation record that was put together jointly by The DB Records in the US and the Stiff Records in UK. Now, it can only be found in rare used records bins in these two countries, and it’s probably not an easy task. Still, it’s an obscure, but a cherished item in my record collection. This show brings every single song from that LP and the rest of the time is filled with some other related tunes either by other Southern new wave bands or related acts from a different era. I hope you will enjoy the second installment of the Vinyl Junkyard.
A few new records premier in today’s show. R. Stevie Moore has a new album called Advanced and it’s as fresh and as exciting as we got used from Stevie. Hipbone Slim who collaborated with Mama Rosin earlier this year, also has an album on his own with his Kneetremblers. Cody Chesnutt who you may remember as a guest on Phrenology by the Roots, is back this year with a new EP called Black Skin No Value, somewhat more ambitious project than his first album Headphone Masterpiece. Calexico are back with a compilation record that contains the best tracks from their tour only discs. The only new name today is the New Orleans street band Washboard Chaz Blues Trio.
The first block in today’s show is dedicated to the three (fake) brothers – Eric, Greg and Jack Oblivian. We know Jack has a new album Rat City, but the other two brothers are shaking the rock’n’roll scene with new records as well. Greg’s Reigning Sound has a new digital record called Abdication For Your Love and Eric has a really exceptional new record with his band True Sons of Thunder. Their older colleague from Memphis, legendary Steve Cropper has a tribute record, dedicated to Lowman Pete Pauling of The “5” Royales fame. New Jersey singer songwriter Neal Casal is back also with the new record. Canadian lady Kathleen Edwards is a new name for us, but we really like what she’s doing.
We have some new names today. Kitten is a new band, lead by Chloe Chaidez, consisting mainly of teenagers and very young people. They are picked by a big label and sound really great live. Us older folks in the audience were taken by their faithful covers of Joy Division and Stooges. The Spits come from Seattle, they have this classic Ramones sound and they have several records out already. Their fifth LP just came out. Jamie McLean is a guitarist from New Orleans. He was associated with the Dirty Dozen Brass Band and now he has his own band and a new record called Time of My Life. We have another new singer songwriter in our show today, his name is Israel Nash Gripka. Although he is from New York City, his sound is very traditionally oriented. We also have Thee Oh Sees and Ian Moore with new releases. Nick Lowe is back with a new album and his old band Rockpile released some live recordings from 1980 on a new CD.
So, Beach Boys finished Smile… I don’t know exactly what to think of it. This album probably never even had a clear vision, and it’s unclear how you can complete it with chaotic pieces that the Boys recorded back in the day. Still, the concept behind it is so intriguing that it will hunt the rock’n’roll forever. It hunts me too. In this show, a portion of the playlist is delivered in Smile format, with a lot of cutting and pasting. Check it out from 14:28 to 28:16 in part 1. The rest of the show brings you new tunes from King Khan and Electric Six. We also have new names Jerusalem and the Starbaskets, Barrarecudas, and The Excitements. Giant Sand has a reissue of Chore of Enchantment and there’s a tribute out there for Ian Dury.
Today’s show is filled with new records from the garage rock scene. Mark Sultan has two new records out Whatever I Want and Whenever I Want. King Louie is back after three years of silence with the new band called Missing Monuments. Rain Bonnets have yet another EP out. Indie legend from London Nick Saloman is back with another Bevis Frond record, his 23rd since 1987, but the first one since 2004. His longest break yet. The Bats from New Zealand are back as well. But the most anticipated return this year is definitely Tom Waits…