Trip #12: We're Gonna Skate to One Song, One Song Only
Trip #12: We're Gonna Skate to One Song, One Song Only
Exhibits include Triple J's Hottest 100 covers, three new Album of the Year candidates, a stacked 2011 Hall of Fame, and The Bob Emergency.
Welcome to The Wax Museum, where we showcase albums worthy of your record collection. Enjoy a new trip right in your inbox every Wednesday!
Your Museum Guide for Wednesday May 24, 2023
The FUTURE Exhibit (Upcoming Vinyl Releases)
The PRESENT Exhibit (Tracking 2023 Album of the Year)
The PAST Exhibit (2011 Hall of Fame Induction)
The RABBIT HOLE Exhibit (The Bob Emergency)
🎧 Listen to this Trip on Spotify and Apple.
Come on in guys. Let’s start with the best thing I saw this week and that was Australian radio station triple J uploading 400+ of their live covers to YouTube. The archive is a treasure trove of unique remakes spanning decades. You can vote now in triple j’s Hottest 100 poll; I made my own Hottest 10 playlist of my favorite covers, with #1 being this furious Denzel Curry cover of Rage Against the Machine’s “Bulls on Parade”. Now that’s how you do it!
Now on to the exhibits…
The FUTURE Exhibit
Highlighting notable new vinyl coming out this Friday, May 26th.
New Albums
Arlo Parks - My Soft Machine | Arlo Parks’ sophomore album My Soft Machine is the followup to her critically acclaimed, Grammy nominated debut album Collapsed in Sunbeams.
Bayonne - Temporary Time (Electric Blue Vinyl) | Austin’s experimental pop musician Roger Sellers aka Bayonne drops third album Temporary Time.
Black Country, New Road - Live at Bush Hall | Black Country, New Road quickly regrouped after the loss of frontman Isaac Wood and wrote an entire new set, and soon headed back on tour performing songs that were just weeks old. Live at Bush Hall chronicles three shows at London’s Bush Hall, with each night featuring a different visual theme, like a haunted pizza parlor called I Ain’t Alfredo No Ghosts. It makes for a great album / concert video combo, with the highlight being the ten minute piano ballad “Turbines” around at the 32:30 mark.
Matchbox Twenty - Where The Light Goes | Matchbox Twenty returns with Where The Light Goes, their first new release in over a decade.
Sparks - The Girl Is Crying In Her Latte | American pop legends Sparks will release their 25th studio album The Girl is Crying in Her Latte and their first since being profiled in Edgar Wright’s 2022 documentary The Sparks Brothers.
Water From Your Eyes - Everyone’s Crushed | Experimental pop from Brooklyn duo Water From Your Eyes; Everyone’s Crushed is their first album for Matador.
Vinyl Reissues
Al Green - Call Me | One of the greatest soul albums of all time gets a 50th Anniversary Reissue with lacquers from the original master tapes.
Caribou - Our Love (Pink Vinyl) | House classic Our Love gets a half-speed master and first time pressing on colored vinyl.
Charlie Byrd and Stan Getz - Jazz Samba | Verve Acoustic Sounds Series remasters the first album of Americanized bossa nova by jazz artists Charlie Byrd and Stan Getz.
Lucy Dacus - Historian (5th Anniversary Red Vinyl) | For the fifth anniversary of Historian, Lucy Dacus will release a limited red vinyl with new artwork.
Silverchair - Diorama (Purple Vinyl) | Australian rockers Silverchair’s 2002 album Diorama gets a purple vinyl pressing, limited to 3000 individually numbered copies.
Simple Plan - No Pads, No Helmets...Just Balls (Crystal Clear Vinyl) | Simple Plan's 2002 punk album gets the 75th anniversary Atlantic Records limited edition crystal clear vinyl.
Steely Dan - Countdown to Ecstasy | It’s about time we get a proper Steely Dan catalog repressing. The series started with Cant Buy a Thrill last year, and we now have second album Countdown to Ecstasy arriving on 180 gram vinyl.
Stone Temple Pilots - Purple (Clear Vinyl) | Stone Temple Pilots’ acclaimed 1994 album Purple is also a part of the Atlantic 75 clear vinyl celebration.
Tame Impala - Lonerism | Lonerism turns ten and gets a deluxe 3 LP reissue, featuring a full side of unreleased demos and a 24-page booklet.
Thelonious Monk/John Coltrane - Thelonious Monk With John Coltrane | Original Jazz Classics Series represses one of the greatest jazz collaborations of all time with Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane on this 1961 album.
📋 Full list of vinyl releases, reissues, compilations.
The PRESENT Exhibit
Behold the 2023 Album of the Year leaderboard. Three new albums get added each week. Standings change throughout the year.
🎧 Full AOTY 2023 Playlist: Spotify | Apple (36 Albums and Counting…)
This week features KAYTRAMINÉ, Tanlines, and Fatoumata Diawara.
KAYTRAMINÉ (KAYTRANADA & Aminé) - KAYTRAMINÉ
Get Vinyl: Transparent Blue (ships in 6-8 weeks)
Kaytraminé is the debut album by the duo of the same name, consisting of American rapper Aminé and Haitian-Canadian producer Kaytranada. The album cover matches the vibes: Aminé charming and chilled back flow meshes with Kaytranada’s sunny instrumentals. If that’s not enough, you got features from Pharrell Williams, Freddie Gibbs, Snoop Dogg, Amaarae, and Big Sean, who’s back in my good graces with this and his verse on Larry June’s The Great Escape.
Tanlines - The Great Mess
Get Vinyl: Multicolor Swirl | Black
It was a pleasant surprise to see synth-pop duo Tanlines back with their first record in eight years. The Great Mess can be seen as a Tanlines reboot with less electronica and more guitar and piano than Highlights and Mixed Emotions. The result is joyful sounding jams that wash over you in a pleasant wave.
Fatoumata Diawara - London Ko
Get Vinyl: Indie Exclusive Blue | Black
I first heard Malian artist Fatoumata Diawara’s striking voice on “Désolé”, a highlight off Gorillaz’s 2020 Song Machine, Season One. Gorillaz co-creator Damon Albarn adds vocals to first single “Nsera” off London Ko and also produced six tracks. This London plus Bamako (Mali capital) collaboration equals London Ko.
Fatoumata is Mali’s first electric guitar female rocker and she effortlessly incorporates rock with jazz, funk, and blues. And boy does she know the blues.
Born in Côte d'Ivoire as one of ten children, her life took a dark turn when her parents, holding her responsible for the death of her five siblings, sent her to live with an abusive aunt in Bamako. Determined to escape a forced marriage, she bravely fled for Paris as a teenager.
She went on to star in 12 movies, create five albums, and now she tours the world with her Wassoulou (West African) music. You can imagine how great album highlights “Nsera”, “Sete”, and “Massa Den” must sound live. Fatoumata is flying to the top of my must-see list.
The PAST Exhibit
Each week we look at a year gone by to find 10 timeless albums that are must-haves in your vinyl collection. We started at 2022, we’re at 2011, and we’re going all the way back to the ‘60s! Yeah baby!
2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | This week is 2011
🎧 Full Essential Vinyl Playlist: Spotify | Apple (120 Songs and Counting…)
Jay Z & Kanye West - Watch the Throne
Get Vinyl: Discogs
Rap giants Jay-Z and Kanye West joined forces at the height of their powers to drop Watch the Throne. The record featured typically lavish production, witty wordplay, and guest appearances and samples from icons like Beyoncé, Frank Ocean, Otis Redding, and Curtis Mayfield.
The lasting legacy from Watch The Throne is “Ni**as in Paris”, which was played live multiple times at each show. At the beginning of the tour, the raucous track would repeat three times in full, and by the time they reached the titular Paris, they played it eleven straight times, setting the record for most times a song has been performed in a row.
Watch the Throne has become a white whale for vinyl collectors, as it only received one pressing. The 2 LP picture disc currently goes for an average $350-$400 on Discogs.
M83 - Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming
Get Vinyl: Black | 10th Anniversary Orange | Discogs
French electronic producer Anthony Gonzalez and his M83 project knocked it out of the park with double album Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming. The sonic journey captures the nostalgia feeling of childhood memories and the desire to escape into a world of imagination. Soaring anthems like “Midnight City”, “Wait”, “Reunion”, and “Steve McQueen” remain go-to’s when craving some synth-pop.
Cults - Cults
Get Vinyl: Discogs
Cults arrived on the scene with a fully formed, instantly catchy lo-fi aesthetic. Much like M83, Cults bottles up nostalgia and creates musical memories that remain lodged in your head.
If you can stomach it, check out the “Go Outside” video, which plants the band members into haunting home video footage of the Peoples Temple, the real life cult led by Jim Jones.
Washed Out - Within and Without
Get Vinyl: White | Discogs
2011 was a significant period for the emerging chillwave genre, known for its dreamy, lo-fi soundscapes with an indie pop sheen. The leaders of this movement were Neon Indian, Toro y Moi, and Washed Out, who all put out iconic albums this year with Era Extraña, Underneath the Pine, and Within and Without respectively.
Manchester Orchestra - Simple Math
Get Vinyl: Discogs
Manchester Orchestra gets inducted into our Hall of Fame for the third and final time with Simple Math, a concept album about frontman Andy Hull’s questions on marriage, love, religion, and sex, recurring themes throughout their catalog. “Pensacola”, “Virgin”, and the title track are the album standouts. The latter boasts an incredible music video directed by the DANIELS, who sweeped this years Oscars with Everything, Everywhere All At Once. Manchester Orchestra repaid the favor by scoring the DANIELS first film Swiss Army Man.
Florence + The Machine - Ceremonials
Get Vinyl: Black | Discogs
English indie rock band Florence + the Machine released their second album Ceremonials to much fanfare and Grammy noms. Led by the powerful vocals of Florence Welch, the album showcased their grandiose sound, most notably on stadium anthem "Shake It Out".
Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver
Get Vinyl: Black | White Anniversary | Discogs
Grow out your beard, throw on your plaid shirt, and head to your log cabin, it’s time to blast Bon Iver’s second album. Justin Vernon’s signature timbre will always be top of mind when considering modern indie folk. While this album sounds incredible in headphones, the vinyl pressings sounded flat and lacked depth. Luckily the anniversary white double vinyl released last year solved this problem and should be the one you get.
Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes
Get Vinyl: Anniversary Black | Discogs
Wounded Rhymes is the second studio album by Swedish artist Lykke Li. The album spawned four singles: the sexual empowerment anthem "Get Some", the melancholic ballad "Sadness Is a Blessing", the dreamy "Youth Knows No Pain", and the smash hit "I Follow Rivers". The ten year anniversary reissue includes two vastly different but incredible remixes of “I Follow Rivers” from The Magician & Tyler, The Creator.
The Weeknd - Trilogy
Get Vinyl: House of Balloons | Thursday | Echoes of Silence
2011 saw the debut of The Weeknd, who dropped three mixtapes over the course of the year: House of Balloons, Thursday, and Echoes of Silence. The dark and druggy trilogy created a new genre of alternative R&B (affectionately known as PBR&B) that influenced many over the next decade. These mixtapes set the stage for The Weeknd’s subsequent success in the mainstream music industry, culminating in a solo Super Bowl halftime performance and creating the upcoming HBO show The Idol, premiering in a week and a half.
The Antlers - Burst Apart
Get Vinyl: Black | Discogs
Brooklyn band The Antlers came to fame with the critically acclaimed 2009 Hospice, a lyrically depressing listen that showed off their many talents, but it was their next album Burst Apart that I keep coming back to. It’s a louder, fuller sound with upbeat guitars, soaring soundscapes, and frontman Peter Silberman’s signature falsetto. Say hello to The Antlers at their Substack, where they regularly add new music.
The RABBIT HOLE Exhibit
Welcome to the non-music wing of the Museum. Take a trip down the pop culture rabbit hole with new recommendations each week.
📺 Videos from all trips can be found here.
The Bob Emergency by Jon Bois | More than 10,000 people named Bob have entered professional sports. For more than a century, we’ve had many Bob sports heroes. That has changed; today, only nine Bobs remain.
You would not think that a history about Bobs in sports would give you chills, make you laugh out loud, and warm your heart, but that’s the genius of Jon Bois and his fascinating documentaries.
If I had to choose my favorite Bob in the 93 minute run time, and that’s like choosing my favorite kid (my daughter, easy), I’ll go with Bob Beamon (the first Bob featured in Part 2) who set the Olympic record for the long jump, which has stood for 55 years and counting. “On that jump, I felt alone.” Goosebumps.
Exit Through The Gift Shop
Thanks for visiting! Hopefully there’s enough musical rabbit holes and vinyl recommendations to get you through the week.
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