Keram's Kurrent favorite Spins:
ever since I was little I was fortunate enough to have great teachers in music. People who went beyond the traditional commercial radio stations to find the stuff that moved, shook and destroyed, inspired, uplifted and dismantled the mind, the heart and the soul. Were it not for those brave few, the scope of my musical knowledge and experience might have been too small to develop a true appreciation for the artists whose work legitimately exists outside the boundaries of widespread accessibility but within the realm of communication, soulful broadcasting, intellectual stimulation, reckless and commiserative abandon. In the spirit of those who guided me, I now humbly proffer my rotating list of great stuff I think you should hear that you might not hear about otherwise.
Similarly, I ask that you let me know what I need to hear that I might have not yet been fortunate enough to come across at kms@constantchange.com
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How do I describe this? Well if you like The Avalanches, Sigur Ros or Zero 7, look for this somewhere stage left. It's beautiful it's brilliant and if you get it now you can say "I told you so" next year when this is EVERYWHERE. |
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Alright now pay attention, cuz if you want to know the kind of shit that really blows my dress up, this is it. This is sparse, minimal, beautifully sung, written and conceived. It doesn't get much better. They made it, I told you about it, the rest is up to you. |
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At The Drive In Die hards try to slag this off as ATDI's sellout record and its everything but. This shit rocks old school. Think Rage and Fugazi and Drive Like Jehu. Intelligence, charisma, balls. Own it and play it often, its is a dying art and it needs your support. call now, operators are standing by. |
Well aside from being one of my top five favorite bands of all time...I have no words, so I'll borrow someone else's: Amazon.com's Best of 1999 |
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Outkast Man I didn't know hip hop could get this good. Hailed as not only one of the best hip hop albums of the year but one of the BEST albums of the year period, Stankonia is a concept album that's as funky as hell and just as profound. Amazing production, amazing flow, amazing gooves. This is a must have for any music fan. -- Keram Malicki-Sanchez |
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Jurassic 5 Amazon.com's Best of 2000 |
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His Name Is Alive This band creeps me out in the best way. They evoke Rosicrucians, Freemasons, and little stuffed toys that crawl around your room at night with minds of their own...haunting and indispensible. -- Keram Malicki-Sanchez |
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Amazon.com's Best of 1998 |
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Stina Nordenstam This little record plinks along like water spiders on the surface of a rain puddle. Softly devastating. A rare and special find. -- Keram Malicki-Sanchez |
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The Magnetic Fields Amazon.com's Best of 1999 |
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Hedwig And The Angry Inch: This album, essentially the soundtrack for the hit off-broadway musical is so pop-punk perfect that it's hard to believe. Most of the music on this recording is played by Stone Temple Pilots with John Cameron Mitchell, who created the role of Hedwig, singing the vocals. Required Listening. -- Keram Malicki-Sanchez |
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Belle & Sebastian Rolling Stone (7/10-24/97) ...it's tough to find fault with a band that opts for shy resolution over self-promotion and, in so doing, reaches peaks of effortless pastoral grandeur. Spin (10/97) ...magnificently layered arrangements blend folk-rock (minus the preciousness) with a near-pure pop sense that could seduce even the most jaded audiophile. It's death-by-comfy-chair... |
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Teenage Fanclub Oh my God. I don't think it gets any better than this. I really don't. There are parts of this album that are better than others but how can anything be perfect without imperfection? I think that ' Guiding Star ', ' Alcoholiday ' and ' December ' may be the most ...ahh what's the word... fucking sublime examples of undersated beauty ever crafted in the history of pop music. -- Keram Malicki-Sanchez |
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i admit, she's a personal close friend. But this record changed my life. i can discern music I made before I heard this record and after I heard this record. Just click here and buy it. NOW. That's an order. You can thank me later. |
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Among the bands loosely lumped together under the postrock flag, the song form is not a common item. The exception to the rule are Long Fin Killie, the Scottish band that sets itself apart by having vocals--and lyrics--on every tune. They're not songs in the traditional sense, in that it's hardly verse-chorus-verse, but songs nonetheless, politically aware and often potent. Musically, Long Fin Killie are an odd bunch, not quite as strange as Tortoise, but they still mess with your head. A piece might initially sound amateurish, but insistence changes the tone and transforms it into something remarkable. On Valentino they've moved beyond the confines they set themselves on their debut, even if they're working with recognizable rock instruments. They're still exploring and mapping this new territory, which stands outside chronology and influence (and occasionally outside musical time). This is step one of the journey. If you're up to the challenge, you'll find it exciting. --Chris Nickson |
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John Parish, P.J. Harvey Rather than an official PJ Harvey album, this is a raw, nerve-shredding side project by Harvey and her chief collaborator. The singer lets it rip in primal scream fashion on the third track ("City of No Sun"), which will immediately deter all but the most dedicated of fans from fully exploring the pair's intriguing art punk visions. "Civil War Correspondent" is one relatively accessible point of entry. --Jeff Bateman |
Check out Keram's recommended reading list
If you have an album or artist you believe should be included on this list please e-mail kms@constantchange.com and include a brief explanation of how and why it has affected you so strongly. I only ask this because this section may be expanded shortly to include brief commentaries on your recommendations.
