Via ILM, a story from Other Music about Michael Stipe buying CDs for Mario Batali, his best bud. Here’s what he bought:
-Gang of Four’s “Entertainment”
-The Stranglers’ “Rattus Norvegicus”
-”a Dennis Bovell comp” (“Decibel“?)
-an un-named Neutral Milk Hotel album
-Stereolab’s “Emperor Tomato Ketchup”
Except for the Dennis Bovell, which I’ve never heard, I love all those albums. But they seem like exactly the ones I would avoid if I was buying stuff for a guy whose tastes (supposedly) run more to the Grateful Dead. It’s like if Mario made Michael try the duck nuts at Del Posto: delicious, but best served to people with refined palettes.
What bands do you always want to put on a mix, but never do?
 |
 |
%s1 / %s2
Swing Out Sister! I love them, pretty much everyone else hates them. Well… they would hate them if they had heard of them. After all, the band only had one hit and that was in 1986.
Too obscure even for indie cred.
I always want to throw a little Italian music on there, but then I have to restrain myself and remember that not everyone else speaks italiano. Sometimes I can’t resist, and throw on a good cut that sounds good whether you know the language or not.
animal collective…
any song by the blood brothers, the bronx, every time i die, or the fall of troy.
hippy bands! ha . keller williams. ryan adams (in some cases). grateful dead. SCI. I cant help it. although im your typical indie guy, i love me some hippy shit
Xiu Xiu – trying to win over a non-indie girl’s heart with good music takes finesse. Putting Xiu Xiu on a mix is like asking for anal sex on the first date.
I’ve got a great in-house recording from 1961 of two pianists from the University of Missouri conservatory playing the Rite of Spring. They really attack it; the energy is comparable to the Ace of Spades. It’s compelling. I can’t really see putting a 30-minute song on a mix, though.
Oddly enough, REM. I don’t know why.
And while I always include Belle & Sebastian, I haven’t worked up the guts to include “Your cover’s blown” off the books ep (though I love it).
Love to hear that version of Rite of Spring however…