New music this week from Atarashii Gakkou Leaders, Bryan Adams, atmos bloom, Waterparks, Jesus Jones, Johnny Marr, James McCartney, Bob Seger, The Strokes, Go Public, MUTT (Oakland), Sparks and much more. Enjoy!
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Okay my friends, be honest. Did you have on your bingo card that Bryan Adams would release his best album in over 4 decades this year? In all seriousness, I think his new one ("Tough Town") ranks up there with "Cuts Like a Kinfe". Even the B-Side singles (Like "51st Street", which I added a couple of weeks back and isn't even on the album) are among his best work.
Atarashii Gakkou is one of those act you either like or hate. I'm on the "like" side of the equation. They started off as a dance troupe with idol singer ambitions, but it turned out that one of them, Suzuka, could really sing and she quickly became the front-woman of the group. Then it turned out another one could really rap. Over time they've all built up specialties, but they're still a dance group, with a knack for hiring solid songwriters and producers. Their new album "From Tokyo With Love" sees them taking up a rock and roll posture and it suits them.
Waterparks is a pretty good if fairly standard post-punk band, with just a touch of metal. But they're remarkably self-aware and had the good sense to get legends like Danny Elfman to guest on the opening track and I must admit it made me give them a second listen. Their new album "JINX" can be a bit obnoxious at times, but there's good stuff there too.
Both The Strokes and Charlie XCX dropped new albums this past week and I'll be honest, I think they're both something of a letdown. Don't get me wrong, they both have good material and I've added tracks from both of their new albums, but I don't think much of the tracks I didn't add - which is most of them. I gave you what I feel are the best tracks on both in the playlist above. You can skip the rest.
After a long time away, Bob Seger dropped a 3 song "Single" of new material which will be on the expanded edition of the release of his new album, "Face the Promise" and I have to say, no one Bob Seger's like Bob Seger does. He has an unmistakable voice and style and it's nice to know that in his 6th decade as a pop/rock star he can still bring it just like he did in the old days. I picked "Wait For Me", the second track from "Little Jane", but in all seriousness I could have picked any of these songs.
atmos bloom is about the most accurately named band out there. Go on, think what you think they sound like based upon the name. There you go. Their new album is called "Everythingness" and is exactly what you'd hope for.
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I may leave Facebook. Now that Newsmax and Meta have entered an agreement to use each other's resources in their AI development, you can expect disinformation to increase thousand-fold. Newsmax lies in just about every story they tell, and Meta/Facebook has the scruples of Jeffrey Epstein. If I could have a page for my band without having a personal page I would do just that.
I fucking despise Facebook, and I use it as little as possible. I'm going to need to consider that that should be reduced even further, to zero.
But because I love you, please have an early listen to a track I'm likely to feature next week:
New music this week from Johnny Marr, Howard Jones, Nia Archives, Peter Gabriel, Selve, Local Nomad, At the Starlight, Scary Pockets, Deep Sea Diver, Fantastic Negrito, my friends Fear 2 Stop, Lenny Kaye and much more. Enjoy!
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It's kind of amazing to me that several artists featured
this week were having hits 40 years ago. Peter Gabriel, Howard Jones, Johnny
Marr (with The Smiths), Semisonic, Paul Weller (who does guest vocals on a new
release from Aziz Ibraham) and Lenny Kaye (who has been Patty Smith's guitarist
forever). They're all up there so let's talk about some other artists this
week.
Nia Archives tends to get classified as an Electronic artist
and I don't think that's fair. Yes, there are electric elements to her work,
but you can say the same about lots of people. You can really notice it on her
new album "Emotional Junglist" in the drums, which tends to have a
frenetic pace to them, but I find her music to be pretty straight ahead pop and
rock and well worth the effort to give a listen. I've added 3 tracks from the
new album this week, so please check them out.
Local Nomad's latest, "Local Nomad & The Soft Rock
Orchestra", is a pretty laid back affair overall with lyrics that are at
times clever and interesting. I especially like the song "Tinderella"
and if you're into this sort of music you might find a kindred spirit here.
Selves' "Breaking Outta Heaven" is a follow-up of
sorts to last year's "Breaking Into Heaven". They tend to hop all
over the place stylistically and I've always had a soft spot for artists like
this. The fact that they are pretty successful at it puts them a good measure
against other artists who do the same thing.
At long last Fantastic Negrito's live album
"Alive" is finally out and it's a good representation of his live
sound. I've added several songs as they've come out as singles over the past
few months and have added the opening track this week.
I feel a bit bad about not adding anything from Aaron Lee
Tasjan's new album "Get Over It, Underdog" because it's a solid
album, but I've added every single from this album as they've come out prior to
this week, and I don’t' feel that the rest of the album quite comes to that
same standard. That's still 6 songs from the album added over time though, so
if you want everything all in one place then the album's for you.
I have to give a shoutout to my friends in Fear 2 Stop, who
have released a quirky EP called "8 bits are plenty". A lot of their
music is definitely outside the mainstream, but sometime it's not and this week
is a good example, with their take on some music from Super Mario Bros.
Finally, I want to introduce you to the band Banda AL9, who
have released a new album with updated mixes of prior releases called
"Hey! Hey! We're Banda AL9!" The reason for the update is to give
proper mixes to English language versions of songs - they are from Brazil and
the original releases are in Portuguese. That said, they're among the best
jangle-pop bands out there and you should check them out.
And as a p.s., did you know that Daryl Hall and Brian Eno
made an album together? It's called Sacred Songs and was eventually released by
Hall's label as a solo album with Eno's name practically erased, after having
been shelved for quite a while. It's worth checking out - it sounds like pop
music from the mid-1980's, which is saying something as it was recorded in the
1970's and released in 1980. An album ahead of its time.
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Congratulations to Spain for winning the World Cup. First
country ever to hold both the men's and women's titles at the same time.
Have we (the U.S.) sent anyone to help the Canadians with
their fires? They sent help to us last year, and the year before, and more. You
know, a good neighbor would help. Of course, the crime administration aren't
really interested in being good neighbors.
The crime administration's pick for Governor of Minnesota,
who was already a long shot, can't vote for himself. The Pillow Guy is a
registered Republican in Texas. I should point out that he doesn't live there
either.
Until today I was unaware of the hate leveled at the new
movie of "The Odyssey" and director Christopher Nolan by the world's
richest pot smoker. Apparently you're not supposed to hire Elliot Page or any
non-white women who won't give poor little rich fuck the time of day, or some
shit. While I will not ever take advice from a drug addict who can't see past
his own dick I wasn't really planning to see the movie anyway. I'm sorry, but I
can't see Matt Damon as the lead.
But I could be wrong. I just don't want to sink
theater-going money into it.
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And because I love you, I ask the burning question: how many
movies do you need to see before you see this one? (I think it's five for me):
New music this week from The Rolling Stones, Fionn, Will Sheff with Okkervil River, U2, Asia, Soul Rash, The Linda Lindas with Hayley Williams, The Temper Trap, Suki Waterhouse, Coach Party and so much more. Enjoy!
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I could not have started this week's playlist in a more
contrasting way than having new music from a barely recognizable Asia (only
Goeff Downes from the original lineup remains) and new music by U2 (and with
Larry Mullins having never left the group after all sill in their original
lineup). Asia is still the bombastic band they've always been (and I don't give
a damn about your "40-year old Virgin" joke) while U2 sounds as fresh
as they have in years. It's quite a contrast between two bands who had their first
US successes in the same years.
So this week obviously belongs to The Rolling Stones. Their
new album, while not their best by a long shot, certainly isn't bad. It ranks
around the "Tattoo You" level of albums, not brilliant but not bad
either. Given that the average remaining living members of the band are over 80
years old it's actually pretty impressive that they still sound this good.
Unlike bands like The Beatles, the Stones started out as a blues band and
there's plenty of evidence on this record that they still remember that, and
those are the best moments. As for me, I've always been drawn to the tracks
where Keith Richards sings lead, but also to their ballads, including the one
that closes out this playlist.
Another album worth your time is the new release from Fionn,
called "scum!". If you look at their bio you'll see they call
themselves "Replacement Olsen Twins" but that barely scratches the
surface of their alt-rocking sound.
For those of you who love old-fashioned and soulful R&B,
I have to recommend The War and Treaty and their new album "The Story of
Michael and Tanya", Led by the Husband and Wife team of Michael and Tanya
Trotter they have occupied various styles but they're really gone for it here,
walking you through their relationship and their ups and downs. Some really
great stuff.
I give a couple of local bands (well, local to their scene)
some love. MUTT (Oakland) is a great 3 piece that give solid punk/pop music,
while Roverto Quiroga mc is Mexico's equivalent of the typical alt-rocker. I've
been following both bands for a while and if either of them gets picked up by a
good producer they're going to go far.
Finally, Suki Waterhouse's new album "Loveland"
has a few good tracks on it. You should give the album a listen and decide for
yourself.
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The world has lost a giant with the passing of Sam Niel. The
New Zealand actor best known for his role in the Jurassic Park movies as well
as a stellar supporting role in Hunt for Red October, and probably the only
heavyweight New Zealander to NOT appear in any Lod of the Rings movies.
He was my wife's favorite actor. Whenever he showed up in
something she'd say "Vassili", after his character in Hunt for Red
October. You might have a favorite movie of his and I will recommend two,
"The Piano" and "Until the End of the World".
He wasn't the star of either movie, but neither movie works
without him. In "The Piano" he plays the husband of Holly Hunter's
mute pianist and the range he possesses in this movie is jaw-dropping. He has
turns as both gentle and maniacal, and commits the worst violence and the
kindest acts in the film. He was very good at complicated people.
In "Until the End of the World" (which was an
early date movie for me and my wife) he is the narrator, slightly unreliable
because he has a crush on the lead female character, played in multiple
languages by Solveig Dommartin. Other than as a narrator he doesn't even show
up in the first act of the film. William Hurt is the male lead, but his motives
are difficult to understand for much of the movie. Without Niell holding the
movie together many of the scenes don't seem to fit together, but you realize
not only that they are all tied together, but his character's perspective
matters, even though he's not the male lead.
This movie was my gateway into movies from Wim Wenders.
He lived in San Francisco for a year, filming The
Bicentennial Man and the TV series Alcatraz. I first saw him without even
knowing who he was in the 3rd Omen movie, where he plays the young antichrist
Damien of the previous movies now grown up and in politics. He was Komarovsky
in the remake of Dr. Zhivago. More recently he did 12 episodes of Peaky
Blinders and a marvelous turn in "Hunt for the Wilderpeople".
He played the actor who played Odin in "Thor:
Ragnarok".
Yeah, I suppose I was supposed to blog about political shit
and the death of a Senator who I particularly disliked, but Sam Niell was
someone I cared about, and I will miss that mischievous smile of his. See any
of his movies. You will know what I mean.
And because I love you, here is the video for the new U2
single, which is actually pretty good.
New music this week from Rosa Walton, Low Cut Connie, Baby Richman, Shed Seven, Peter Gabriel, Bryan Adams, Library Card, The Afghan Whigs, David Duchovny (!), Snow Patrol with Kylie Minogue and much more. Enjoy!
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I get asked fairly often where do I find some of these new artists? Sometimes it's just dumb luck, like running across a social media post for Milagro Guerra and her new song "Dopamine". Sometimes its recommendations, sometimes they show up on Discover Weekly on Spotify. Sometimes, the artists find me, like the band Baby Richmond and their debut single "Lights Down", who followed me on Bluesky.
But no one has ever paid me a single penny for placement. I don't accept suggestions. I have to find them myself.
The new album from Low Cut Connie is possibly the best protest album so far this year. There have been a lot of good songs by great artists that we can all roll off but here is a full album of what it's like to be an American right now. "Livin' In The USA" is exactly what it says it is, reminiscent of the rock and roll of Springsteen and others. Well worth your time.
I had never heard of Rosa Walton before this past week and apparently I'm well in the minority given the number of followers she has. Her new album "Tell Me It's A Dream" is a solid effort in a style of alt-pop we haven't heard much of lately.
On Canada Day (July 1 if you didn't know) that stellar Canadian Bryan Adams dropped a protest song called "51st State", which rather nicely tells the Crime Administration to fuck off. I honestly didn't know he had it in him. Bravo.
"Don't Leave Me Here Like That" is now the 4th (5th?) single to drop from Stanley Simmons, the band made up of the sons of Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley of Kiss. Unlike their parents they do psychedelic harmonic power pop and we still have another two months to wait before their debut album finally comes out. Each song they release is something new and proof that their vocal harmonies are sharper than you might guess at first listen.
Deep Purple's "Splat!" is finally out, and it's quite frankly a lot more prog rock than I would have suspected. If you go it looking for Richie Blackmore's Deep Purple you won't get it, but their rock and roll hall of fame worthy credentials are on full display here, and it's hard to argue with the results.
Finally, because I love you I am giving you a video that I normally wouldn't because of the religious overtones, but even an old atheistic cynic like myself has to admit that this is pretty damned moving.
New music this week from Exploring Birdsong, Muse, Swim Deep, Beth Orton, Telescreens, The Rolling Stones, sleepazoid, Linda Perry, Jon Lampley, Jesus Jones, Sugar, Chris Reed and the Anime Raiders, Inspiral Carpets, MUTT and much more. Enjoy!
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I knew Linda Perry was working on a new solo album, and now
that it's out I find myself needing to reset my expectations. "Let It Die
Here" is a good album, but it's much more straight-ahead pop than I was
expecting from the founder of 4 Non-Blondes. That shouldn't be a surprise
though, given all of the pop artists she's written for and produced over the
years. Like I said, it's a good album. Just don't expect 4 non-Blondes.
If you like Muse you're going to like the new album.
"The Wow! Signal" is most definitely a Muse album, but some of it
sounds like a retread of things they've done before. You really can't knock
someone sticking with the same formula that's been winning for them. Just ask
AC/DC. Maybe I was just expecting more.
A couple of bands from my mid-20's dancing days dropped new
singles this week. The new track by Jesus Jones, "Shot in the Chevy",
is unmistakenly them, but the track is a bit more laid-back than I had
expected. On the other hand, Inspiral Carpets dropped a new track called
"Drag the Bag" and it's the same stuff they were doing in the 1990's.
Of the newer bands sleepazoid impressed me a lot with their
latest, "New Age". The Australian group have dropped a solid alt-rock
album that's hooky and just a bit heavy on the reverb. They're worth checking
out.
Finally, the latest from The Rolling Stones would fit right
in with what they were doing in the 1980's. Everyone focuses on their blues
driven rock and roll but this is a band with some pretty solid ballads and
"Jealous Lover" ranks right up there.
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With a number of Progressive Democrats, dare I say
Democratic Socialists, winning primaries in the past week in seats that are
safely Democratic - they're going to go to congress - it has got me thinking
about something said by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) a few weeks back
that really hasn't got a lot of traction in the press. The basic gist was
asking if she had her sights on running the Democratic Party or perhaps running
for President, and her reply was that she wasn't thinking that small.
And I'm starting to believe she has a point. Believe me, I'd
like to feel hopeful again.
Let's face it, the current administration has pretty much
destroyed the American experiment in democratic governance. Our "Republic,
if we can keep it" is pretty easy to bungle as it turns out. All it needed
was a narcissist who ignored every norm we had celebrated for 250 years and for
no one to call his ass out on it. He tried to take over a party and then a
nation and the people best set to prevent it rolled over and gave him the keys.
The Democratic Party has been putting out a message of
taking the fight to him if given the chance, and attempting to reset everything
to where it used to be. Remember we were once civil with one another? Remember
debating? Remember checks and balances? That's the big one - checks and
balances. Give them a shot and they will restore checks and balances. Hit the
reset button on American Democracy.
That's just not good enough.
Don't get me wrong, I'm going to vote for the people who
don't actively support fascists. Generally speaking that has been the
Democratic Party for a while now. That said, I don't want just a reset (or even
a just reset) of American Democracy. I want to do better.
We need to swallow the fact that other nations in the world
are now doing things better than we are. Yes, taxes are higher in The
Netherlands. You know what they don't have? Medical bills. People in Europe
don't live longer because they drink wine, they live longer because they have
free healthcare.
Why the hell can't we have free healthcare? In case you
haven't noticed we're about to become the only country on this continent
that doesn't have free healthcare.
The Japanese have higher taxes than we do. You know what
they also have? Working public transit. You can get anywhere in the country in
a few hours without driving and unless you're going to Okinawa or Hokkaido you
probably don't need to fly either. You can travel hundreds of miles in only a
couple of hours. Most people in Japan don't own cars.
Why the hell don't we have bullet trains?
Last summer a sinkhole opened up in a suburb of Tokyo. It
swallowed up a number of cars, infrastructure, and caused significant damage.
You know how long it took to repair? 24 hours. It happened that fast because
they have a responsive government and infrastructure to handle emergencies like
this.
Why the hell can't we have functioning infrastructure
support?
A lot of newsworthy names, stalwarts of the Democratic
Party, have been moaning about this supposed uprising from the left, asking for
moderation and trying to calm "fears" and talk about a united party
led by the old guard, who have a plan - we are told. I haven't heard said plan,
but they keep saying as long as they get back in power we should expect rapid
change!
To the center again.
Fuck that.
Moderates don't change the world and the world needs changing. We need this
coming from the left, and hard. Positive change doesn't come any other way. It
never has. We've already seen what change from the right looks like and we as a
people and a country are paying the price.
It's time for change from the left. I'm not talking Obama,
who as a Senator and later President was mostly moderate and I'll be honest I
don't blame him for that. I'm talking Biden, who was the most progressive
President in a century. I'm talking even further left.
How else do we get a national healthcare system?
Infrastructure support? Transportation? I higher standard of education as the
expectation and not the exception? We can do this. We can do better. But it's
only the left that is trying to lead us there.
It's not Progressive. It's not Democratic Socialism.
It's HUMANITY.
It's where I choose to live.
We might be able to compromise with the Democratic Party,
but we cannot compromise with the right-wing. We need to move the whole concept
of "moderate" back to where it once was, which is pretty far to the
left of where it is now. Every Democrat from McGovern on has been called a
Socialist or worse, or did you not remember that. I am waaaaaay the hell to the
left of those people. You know, I don't actually give a damn whether a
government is big or small. I want it to fucking work. If that takes more
people working then so be it.
But I need to emphasize something important - it's not that
the left needs to work with the moderates; it's that the moderates need to
compromise with us.
Because in case you haven't noticed it, the message of the
progressive left is winning.
And because I love you, more proof that Anna Taylor-Joy can
act in just about anything:
New music this week from Quiet Houses, Haircut 100, Brockhoff, A, Eels, Peter Gabriel, Sparks, The Klittens, Dust Bowl Revival, Mike Nova, Roger Waters with Mona Miari, Nanook, Hana Hope, Kat Robichaud and much more. Enjoy!
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My vote for Best New Artist for 2026 may go to Brockhoff, whose first full-length album "Easy Peeler" is so good that I seriously debated including all 14 tracks in this week's list. This is a solid, consistent and fun album full of hooks, pop and rock and roll. She has released EPs before now so that might disqualify her from the category (the rules about that sort of this are designed to confuse people) but I've owned the album for 24 hours and have listened to it three times now. Do yourself a favor and check it out.
And after months of waiting, the long long awaited album from Haircut 100 has just dropped, entitled "Boxing the Compass". It's like they never left. The album is a worthy successor of all the promise the band showed in their heyday and reminds you just how much fund something like this can be.
You're not going to find many albums that are as full and well-rounded as the latest from Quiet Houses called "We're All In Love". It's not a concept album, but the stories told in each song cover common themes of life and getting on with life, and the flow of the album from song to song is superb. Well worth your time.
What can you say about a band with the audacity to just call itself A? Especially a band that has taken 20 years between albums? Their comeback is called "Prang" and it's a wallop to the face of riffs and hard rock.
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I had a long weekend and I'm really not up for digging into the political stories, other than to make this comment about The head of the Crime Administration who said, “We’ve had some real problems with Vandalism at the beautiful Reflecting Pool.”
Actually true. Some dumb motherfucker painted the bottom of the whole thing blue.
And #RIP Clive Davis - one of the most influential people in music and a proud Bisexual.
And because I love you, watch Metallica have some fun from a couple of weeks ago.
New music from Goose, The Bobby Lees, Infinity Song, Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs, The LInda Lindas, The Smashin Pumpkins, Pockets (i.e. Scary Pockets), Yes, Theatre, John Southworth, The Transatlantics and much more. Enjoy!
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I have added 4 songs from Goose's new album "Big Modern!" to the playlist, and it was hard to narrow it down to just those four. This might be the best album of 2026 so far. It's a mix of Talking Heads, Steve Miller Band, King Crimson and even a touch of whimsy and 70's glam. That they're able to get all of that to work together is amazing in and of itself, but the songs are just so damned good. I've listened to this album several times in the past few days and like it more each time. Highly recommended.
The Transatlantics are exactly what their name says; a band made up of trans individuals from both the European and American sides of the Atlantic. Their self-titled debut album came out in December but it's only starting to get traction now as they tour Europe. Set aside the unique makeup of the membership of the band and you find to pretty solid rock/alternative music, a bid reminiscent of early Oasis. Give them a listen for just the music - they deserve it.
Infinity Song's new album, also self-titled, is also a standout. I had already added a few songs from the album as they came out as singles and still found room to add a few more to the playlist. They do subtle things with their vocal arrangements that I have always found worth the listen, and their songwriting skills and lyrics have gotten much better than they were when they mostly did covers. Worth your time.
I think it's fair now to stop thinking of Mike Campbell as Tom Petty's guitarist and start thinking of the band he leads, Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs, as what he should be remembered for. I'm not knocking all those years with Petty because there's some amazing stuff there, but the band's 4th album "Mission of Mercy" is as solid as anything Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers did. It's taken a while but I think Campbell has finally settled into the leadership role and relaxed enough that the band sounds like a cohesive unit now, and the payoff has been worth waiting for. It's good and it's time to let the influence of Tom Petty go.
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I was eleven years old during the celebration of our nation's 200th birthday. I was living with my father in Michigan, about 60 miles outside of Detroit. I remember the celebration quite well as we and a few neighbors got together and barbequed steaks, pork, catfish and bass that we had caught in one of Michigan's many unnamed lakes, corn on the cobb, cokes and other assorted drinks for the adults (my dad didn't drink much beer at the time and I was much too young to appreciate whiskey).
I kissed a girl for the first time. I mean a real kiss, not a family kiss. That girl and I spent most of the summer together, not knowing that our next one would be the last. Oh, don't go for the drama. I only lived with my father over the summers and he eventually moved back to California and her family moved to Arizona. I would meet her again a few times over the years until my early 20's, but that would be that.
End digression.
Thing is, we had barbeque, fireworks, people just being together and having fun. We were speculating about the upcoming Olympic Games that would be held just across the Detroit River from us and there was the usual bread and circuses on the TV, but that was really about it.
Gerald Ford was President and all they had were fireworks. You can look it up, he was actually out of Washington D.C. for most of the day. He hosted the President of France before the day and hosted the Queen of England shortly after.
But the thing I want to note is the coordination of events. At first, there was the American Revolution Bicentennial Commission (ARBC), established in 1966 by Congress under then-President Johnson to start putting events together. However, it was disbanded in 1973 and replaced by Congress for being too commercial and too politically driven. The American Revolution Bicentennial Administration (ARBA) was established to help coordinate all of the events nationwide and as I remember it this was quite successful. There were parades and events that after the failures of Vietnam and Watergate helped us for the first time to feel like a united country again.
The Olympics came two weeks later and after the horrors of what had happened in Munich to have a relatively safe games was not just a relief but a blessing. The US didn't have Mark Spitz swimming for us anymore but we still dominated the events, and in diving Greg Lougainis won a silver, starting a run that would eventually lead to him dominating the 1980s. It would be the games dominated by Nadia Comăneci, who earned the first 10.0 in gymnastics ever.
And everyone was just starting to hear about this Peanut Farmer from Georgia.
But on the actual night itself what I remember is a few families gathered around with their own fireworks, good food on the grill, lots of sodas and other libations, and my father blasting his two favorite musicians from inside the house: Jimi Hendrix and Neil Daimond.
What it wasn't was the celebration of any single individual. Was George Washington important? Sure. Paul Revere? Sure. Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Patrick Henry? Absolutely. Gerald Ford? No.
The whole celebration wasn't about any person, but the fact that the idea of a government by the people and for the people was still with us. Sure, we had some rocky moments but we were still here, and we were getting better.
I seriously doubt that even Ronald Reagan would approve of what's going on these days, and it's his fault that we started down this road. Weird as it sounds for me to say, I can say that having met both men. Reagan was a disaster for the country but he was all about wanting the country to succeed. He was just wrong about how to do it. The current guy? He doesn't give a fuck about the county. It's all about him.
I am perfectly happy to celebrate the country I was born and raised in, and have lived in most of my life. The country, not the administration, not the people in power. The very idea of our nation is still a good one as long as the people in power honor what it really means.
I hope to see that one day very soon. We need to erase everything the Crime Administration has done and they need to be held accountable. Their leader has put his personal touch on everything from turning the White House into the White Trash House, his name on just about everything, and everything covered in gold (gold leaf, gold plastic and so on). The East Wing of the White House restored, the Rose Garden restored, power redistributed to the three branches of government.
The real leaders of this nation throughout its history have left their marks without the need to have their own names placed on it. It's almost as if the current leader is so frightened that he'll be forgotten that he has to have his name on everything. We cannot let that happen. His name must be erased from everything that already existed before he came along. That which he's destroyed while trying to build something with his name on it must be restored.
We need to be able to celebrate the nation, not the man. It will make the fireworks of 50 years ago worth it.
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So now that the fight is over (and I have no clue or any desire to learn who won) how long will that fucking circus tent remain on the front lawn of The White House?
As if there wasn't enough to be outraged about, the Crime Administration has put $5 Million into gold-plating 4 statues of horses that are near the Lincoln Memorial. Not only if that so very tacky, but the cost of doing so should only be about 5% of that. Google it yourself if you don't believe me.
So the "deal" with Iran is to reset to where we were before we attacked Iran, plus freeing the funds we had frozen for decades, plus a few dozen American dead. Apparently the Art of the Deal is all about finger painting. About $1,000 of your tax dollars went into this. Mine as well.
So apparently the former South African/Canadian/"Visionary"/Pot-head and Ketamine enthusiast is now a Trillionaire. 1,000 Billions. The number is so large that it borders the insane and comprehensible. A Billion years ago Dinosaurs roamed the Earth. A Trillion years ago the Universe didn't exist and wouldn't for another 985 Billion years.
I do not wish any ill of Mitch McConnell, and I hope he has a speedy recovery from whatever put him in the hospital and a retirement long enough that he can see the rest of us dismantle all of the damage he's done to the Judiciary. That could take a while but it starts once he's gone from the Senate, which will be January at the latest.
Oh, in case you didn't notice it, they're coming for Medicaid and Social Security again. They always do.
I actually watched some of the circus that was the removal of the head of the Crime Administration's name from the Kennedy Center. To me, with a wee bit of construction knowledge, the scaffolding makes sense. The tarp also makes sense as it's a safety issue - although they do make them see-through. Leaving the scaffolding up, and therefore the tarp, is a political decision. You and I know full well that they have no intention to restore the portions of the exterior of the building damaged by the removal of those letters.
I'm not a Knicks fan. Never was. But you have to admit, their comeback and eventual win of the series is the stuff of legend.
New music this week from Evanescence, Death cab for Cutie, Doublespeak, Lola Bates, Mercury Teardrop, Prince, Stanley Simmons, Europe, The Beaches, Pete Yorn, Folk Bitch Trio, A.A. Williams and much more. 59 songs all told. Enjoy!
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The new Evanescence album is out and boy does it ever sound like an Evanescence album. Their latest, "Sanctuary", is what we've come to expect from them and they're very good at it. This is the band that many other hard rock bands fronted by women copy, after all. I have added a few of their songs to the playlist this week.
The new Death Cab For Cutie album is probably their best since they broke through into the mainstream. "I Built You a Tower" feels like a true successor to "Narrow Stairs" even if it sounds more mature than that breakthrough. It should, that was 18 years ago now. Sorry to make you feel old. Again, I've added more than one of their songs to the playlist.
For the third (!) week in a row, "The Professor" Nick Harrison has released a new album of soul covers of alt-rock staples. This time around he covers The Verve, Harvey Danger, Evanescence, Cake and much more. He's good at this so of course I've added yet another track.
If you're looking for a flashback to the 80's and 90's synth music - and to the best of it - I recommend you discover Doublespeak. Vince Clark (the other guy in Erasure) and Blancmange's Neil Arthur have put together a new band and revisited their own catalogs, producing something both nostalgic and brand new. They also visit the catalogs of other artists, and shown by their cover of "Rock On".
It's been a very long time since a new artist came out of the Laurel Canyon/Coldwater Canyon sound, best known for artists like Joni Mitchel, but I must introduce you to Lola Bates and her debut album, "Love and Power". This is a set of well-crafted pop songs well worth your time.
And as we have a new single from Prince, we are all reminded of just how damned good he was, and that we're practically starving for more and more material to be released from that vault of his.
I'm not really into rap so I missed a lot of this, but Eminem has been releasing diss track after diss track for weeks now, but has no new album on the horizon. That's really a shame, because even I think he's doing career-defining work right now. I'll add a video at the end of this post with an example.
Those of you who have been coming around here for a while might have noticed that I add Japanese artists from time to time. This week I've added the new single from B'z (whom I've been a long-time fan of) and also Yonige. All 4 songs on the EP that I've added the song "Don't" from are all featured in an anime called "Kamiina Botan, Yoeru Sugata ha Yuri no Hana" about a group of women living in a boarding house and their tastes in alcohol. It's a fun slice-of-life anime and the music fits in well.
Finally, I have to address the opener for this week, a new song from Stryper. You have to understand that I'm not a fan of Stryper. For the most part I find them to be just another bland hair metal band, even with their Jesus-ing up of their lyrics. Yeah, maybe they were the first Religious front and center hair metal band, but they weren't all that good in their heyday. The new song isn't bad though, and it does bring back a memory from my own past.
Back in the mid 1980's, my band ASK was rehearsing in a run-down rehearsal space in Van Nuys, California. None of us lived there, but it served as a compromise as our drummer lived in the north valley while the rest of us were west L.A. This was a converted space with barely cardboard between rooms, and we were this small pop/rock band without top of the line gear. One week we were rehearsing and perhaps the loudest band I had ever heard started practicing next door. Great guitars, Marshal stacks... you get the idea. They had gear that probably cost more than the building they were renting in.
This was WASP. Not as they eventually became, but as they started. They were loud and talented and very raw. During a break in practicing I got to talking with one of them and voiced a complaint about how loud they were. He laughed and said, "At least we're not Stryper." We eventually relocated to a different rehearsal space as they eventually took over a residential spot in the Van Nuys building.
I think they eventually bought that rehearsal space but don't hold me to that. They did get signed pretty quickly, part of the hair metal Los Angeles wave. So did Stryper. Although we got lots of label interest, we didn't. The record labels hadn't yet figured out that there were other scenes in Los Angeles.
Anyway, any time I hear about either of these two bands I remember that laugh and "At least we're not Stryper."
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To the people upset about the rainbow integrated into Pink Floyd's logo on social media; Y'all are aware, aren't you, that there has ALWAYS been a rainbow on the cover of Dark Side of the Moon? Aren't you?
I'm guessing that someone forgot to make Scott Pelley sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement. Amateurs.
I wonder how all of the bars around Madison Square Garden are taking the closure of all the streets to pedestrian traffic today?
FIFA selected the first referee from Somalia as one of the officials for the World Cup. Somalia gave him a diplomatic passport to help him navigate the restrictions on Somali passport holders to traveling to the US. The US prohibited him from entering anyway. Same thing happened to the team photographer from Iran. We do not deserve to be the host/
Oh hey guess what? The White Trash anniversary of our nation (250 years, apparently) will only be available on streaming.
There has been a serious effort to make Graham Platner the face of the Democratic Party by everyone who isn't a Democrat. It's obvious why; he has a few red flags and a troubled past. When people confront me about it (and believe you me they do all over Social Media) I have a simple reply that I have found to be successful. "I don't live in Maine." If you live in Maine and are reading this, best of luck to you.
Sorry Mr. Bovino, I don't think you're going to be President. We haven't had a short President in a long time now.
Quick fact check for you: The Crime Administration wants to blame the Biden Administration for the Screwworm outbreak in our cattle supply. The fact is that in 2024 Biden stopped all live cattle imports when a single case was discovered. The current administration reopened live cattle from South America in February of this year in an effort to get beef prices down. Not only didn't it work, but given that the screw worm's life cycle is only 24 days there is simply no way this could have happened prior to mid March of this year. Sorry gang, this one's on the Crime Administration.
If you're gonna blame Biden you have to also acknowledge that he might be a time traveler.
I'm concerned that Mike Johnson has a terrible pastor. He doesn't seem to know that lying is a sin. Or have the schools gotten so bad that Republicans no longer realize that counting takes place over time?
And because I love you, here is the first 2026 Emenem Diss track I discovered:
New music this week from Dogstar, Peter Gabriel, Frances of Delirium, Sonic Whip, Violet Grohl, Sparta, Theatre, Tigeycub, Johnny Dynamite, See You Next Year, Scandal, Infinity Song, Greta Van Fleet and so much more. Enjoy!
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I've always been fascinated by the original "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" by Gil Scott-Heron not just because of the words but also the music, written by Brian Jackson, who collaborated with Scott-Heron often. Jackson has a new album out and the lyrics to many of the works he did have been updated for the modern age, so I have to start you out with the new version, featuring Masters at Work, Kenny Dope, Louie Vega and Black Thought. The new version has the same vibe as the original and is a worthy addition to anyone's collection.
If you're a fan of Paul McCartney you're likely to enjoy his new album "The Boys of Dungeon Lane". There are spots where he shows he still knows how to rock out, and the album is a pretty thorough look back at his own childhood. His voice isn't what it once was, but he gets there sometimes and he's in his mid eighties now, so cut him some slack. He's still a solid songwriter and there are hits to be found.
Can you even imagine a world where Keanu Reeves' band Dogstar had been a hit the first time out? Would we have had The Matrix, John Wick or any of a dozen other movies? It just boggles the mind. I ask this question because we now have Dogstar's second full album and it's as good as anything you might hear from an alt-rock three piece. Maybe they've grown into the role. But maybe we have.
So far in 2026 I've added 5 singles by Sonic Whip to the playlist. At long last there is a full album also called "Sonic Whip" and from that album comes another 3 tracks that I've added. That's 8 out of 12 songs on the album, so you can already guess what I think of them. They're an amazing young band and I hope they have a long future ahead of them with work of this quality. If there is room in your playlist for anyone new, Sonic Whip gets the nod from me.
As long time readers of this blog know I am a champion of the unknown band. One such band is Florida's At The Starlight. They first came to my attention a few weeks ago with their single "Under a Streetlight in Bushwick" and they now have an EP out called "Turning Into Sand". They have all of 24 followers on Spotify (including me) and deserve much more. Check them out.
Violet Grohl has finally released a full album and while it's unfair to compare her work to that of her father the comparisons are going to come anyway. "Be Sweet To Me" is a solid effort with strong songs and Violet is a better singer than her father. She rocks out but not the same way dod does, and I think that's a good thing. She's her own boss and her own voice, and we all should let the comparisons go. The album is worth your time.
As we have a full moon in the past week we also have a new Peter Gabriel song called "A Hard Lesson". There's an actual blues riff in the song! A blues riff! Seriously, if it had been played on guitar it would feel perfectly in place with B.B. King or ZZ Top or any other initialed blues man. If you see the behind-the-scenes video he posted about this one he even admits it, and talks about how they toyed with leaving the riff on guitar at first. While the song talks about things that are hard to discern you won't be able to miss the riff.
My last comment on this week's music is the self-titled not-a-debut album from Johnny Dynamite. I don't know where this guy has been other than Philadelphia, but it's like The Church was suddenly on the scene again, but American and fronted by Rick Springfield. Full of pop and rock and a lot of fun.
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I would hate to be a Democratic voter in the state of Maine right now. I wish I knew what to think about their new Senate Candidate. He says good things, but has done bad things. I'm glad it's not my decision to work out, but I do wish they could have done better.
But I'm in California. We'll know in a couple of days how good or bad it will be here.
Anyone else out there think it puts a bullseye on the back of every serviceman (and woman) in the middle east if we integrate our military with Israel? Does anyone else think that if we do this getting ourselves out of it will be like trying to escape quicksand?
Ever notice that when Faux News interviews a landlord about their New York City properties that they always interview someone who lives in Florida?
If the "Freedom 250" celebrations are so intent on keeping poor people out of the event then why does the area around and including the White House look like a monument to White Trash?
Can anyone explain to me what the winning strategy is that inspires you to call an 8th generation Texan "Girly"? Is that really all you've got to combat the fact that your own candidate is a self-proclaimed "scandal plagued individual, like the President"?
When the oppressor says "Relax" doesn't that usually mean that something much worse is about to happen?
Are we still at truce with Iran? It doesn't feel like it.
When they say they're going to crack down on mail-in voting, they mean California, Oregon and Washington. Not the Florida man who voted from his office in D.C.
What is that pillow salesman going to do if the $1.776 Billion slush fund never gets established? I also have to wonder if anyone involved in the settlement that created this fund realized that the judge in the case can say no?
I really have to wonder, what was the first thought of Secretary Hogsmead when he heard the phrase "Soaked in Animus"? I'd bet it was frat boy level awkward.
And because I love you, here is the original, from Gil Scott-Heron, with most of the references:
New music this week from Vent 414, Muse, The Warning, The Pradox, Superheaven, Moron Police, Stuck on Planet Earth, Frances of Delirium, The Wavering, Bleachers, Hohnen Ford, Lola Young and much more. 60 tracks, so lots to devour. Enjoy!
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In order for me to tell you about the band Vent 414 I need to tell you about another, The Wonder Stuff. The Wonder Stuff were a large part of my transition from dumb college graduate to actual human adult. They were my favorite band of the late 1980's and early 90's. Sharp, cynical, aggressive songwriting and fantastic live shows, several of which I had been to. Their leader was a man named Miles Hunt and unfortunately for all of us, The Wonder Stuff broke up. Miles went on to form Vent 414 with Pete Howard, who had just finished his tenure with The Clash and Morgan Nichols of Senseless Things. They released one album and then disintegrated. Miles reformed The Wonder Stuff, who are still together to this day.
Welp, during his down-time Miles reformed Vent 414 as well, and they've just released "Second", their first album in over 30 years but really only their second album. Being such a huge Miles Hunt fan I've added a lot of songs to the playlist this week.
The Paradox has been something of an internet sensation for a couple of years now, being one of the rare African American alt-rock bands out there, but they've also opened for Green Day and Jack White and should be paid attention to. they have an EP out called "NSFW" and it's fully of catchy pop/alt/rock music that is well worth your investment.
Last week I talked about "The Professor" Nick Harrison and his groovy soul re-makes of alt-rock songs and this week he's released another album! It's just as solid as anything, but his remake of Counting Crow's "A Long December" is just about perfect. It's got a great slow burn going for it, it's sublime, and if this were the first version of it I'd ever heard I'd have fallen in love with it. It's on the list this week.
You want an old-fashioned pop rock album? Well, maybe you should turn to the Moron Police. They sound like Night Ranger crossed with Asia, but from Norway. I've had a lot of fun listening to their latest, "Pachinko" and I think you would enjoy them too.
Stuck on Planet Earth is a band with a small following that deserves a larger one, and I'm here to help. Their new album is called "All But Nothing" and it's a solid rock-alt-pop album with catchy riffs and quirky lyrics that I think you will enjoy.
One of my favorite AI bands is back, BBBL. Yes, I know it's AI. They don't try to hide it. But "2m2b" catchy and danceable and I'm not looking for anything serious from them. Sometimes we musicians get lost in being an artist and need to remind everyone (including ourselves) that sometimes you just wanna have fun.
And look out, Lola Young is back with a very strong new single, "From Down Here", which is both different from anything she's put out before, and yet you know immediately it's her. That's a rare talent and people like that tend to go very very far. She's come a long way since I first discovered her with only 14 thousand followers on Spotify. That number is well over 2 million now and she deserves it.
There's really a LOT of great new music this week, and I feel bad making you all wait an extra day for it all. Enjoy!
Oh, and if you listen at the radio station you'll get an extra track by Michael Psycho, an acquaintance of mine on Social Media. The song is called "Dear Cheetler", and the whole playlist plays on Wednesdays in a loop, so give it a listen if you can!
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I was on the phone (okay, it was a Teams meeting) with a friend who lives in Ireland and he accused me of being a Liberal. Guilty. I'm going to be exactly the opposite of any group of assholes who calls one of my children a terrorist for the simple sin of existing.
The head of the Crime Administration has gone to Walter Reed for the third time in 5 months. Can we start bitching about how he's too old for this fucking job now?
You know that $1.776 Billion slush fund that the Crime Administration has set up? Mr. lumpy pillow guy wants to claim about 25% of it. So does that guy who pointed a gun at Black Lives Matter protestors back in 2020.
I am not even slightly surprised that a UFC match is being held on the South Lawn of The White House for our 250th birthday celebration. I am sometimes astounded at just how... tacky... these people are.
Yes, I watched Stephen Colbert's last episode. So should you. CBS is pathetic.
If Cheryl Hines ever decides to dump Bobby, this past weekend's attempt at snake charming could very well have been one of the final straws. If only, if only.
I'm no expert, but it looks to me like whatever the final resolution of our "adventure" in Iran, that Iran will get more out of it all than they had before it started and frankly I don't see how it could possibly get resolved any other way. All he had to do was nothing, but our Couch Cushion Quarterback of a Secretary of something wanted to kick the hornet's nest. I'm no expert, but I'm smarter than him at least.
It looks to me like FIFA's grand American Adventure isn't going very well.
Thomas Massie lost his primary in Kentucky last week. This week he's already filed to run for the seat he just lost. He's betting on his successor being a disaster, and I'd call that a safe bet.
And because I love you, let us say goodbye to Stephen Colbert together:
And as a bonus, this is how I was introduced to The Wonder Stuff:
New music this week from The Pretty Flowers, Chalk, Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs, Night Talks, Shale, Aldo Nova, Ariel Posen, The Amazons, Tank and the Bangas, Nico D, Cody Fry, Exploring Birdsong and much more. Enjoy!
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I can't say I really feel like blogging today. Sometimes the world is a LOT.
But because I love you, here is a truly challenging pop song harmonically, by Squeeze:
