A few thoughts on friction and a buncha fresh tracks.
I am finally getting around to going through a box of 45s my mom gave me. Ostensibly, this was “payment” for helping her downsize her house a few years ago. Really, I think it was just a face-saving exercise for her.
Wherever you fall on the friction spectrum, 45s sit at the far end.
Friction and intentionality are all the rage these days—I’m as guilty of yapping about this as anyone. I’m also a fan of it. I spend my entire workweek splitting my attention and keeping multiple plates in the air. Sitting down to do nothing but listen to a record is a great way to recover. There are, of course, all the other sensory experiences that come along with it: the smell of the vinyl…reading the liner notes…appreciating the art—all the tactile things.
Still, 45s feel like a bridge too far. I like friction, but not this much. My turntable is on one side of the room. Playing 45s means no couch; it means sitting right in front of the sound machine. That’s partly why it’s taken me so long to get around to this. Real life gets in the way, of course, but it also takes some work to get through a box of these things.
The upside is that going through a small collection like this lets my mind wander a bit. Everyone’s collection says a bit about who they are, and in my case, I’ve known this person my entire life—but I know very little about the almost one-third of her life before I showed up. These little slabs of wax help fill in the blanks a bit, but they raise almost as many questions as they answer.
I know the story behind my own 45s. Each of them tells its own little story, a plotline I can recite: where I was in life when I picked them up—literally—what buses I took to get there, and so on.
Did my mom find these on her own, or did someone else tell her she “had to hear this”? If she found them herself, the likely source would have been the radio. What station was she listening to? I know the house she lived in, but I also know it wasn’t close to any stores. Did she ride the bus to get these? I can pick up the story, but only from the midway point.
The station I remember playing constantly in the house has since become a talk-radio station. That’s a rant for another day.
Also, while I know why everyone put address labels on their records, it still strikes me as strange. Today, we live in a world where everything is collectible, and Lord help you if there’s a 1 mm crease on a corner. They were betting the other way. Records weren’t meant to be preserved; they were meant to be played, even if that meant someone changing things up every two or three minutes.
Maybe that’s the best takeaway here: treating records—or any physical media, really—purely as an investment vehicle is a weird choice. Of course, you should take care of them. Putting them in sleeves and storing them in the right place is the way to go. But ultimately, their place is on the turntable, spinning around and delivering sound.
On to the music…
This week, we’ve got killer tracks from all corners of the music universe. There’s a ripper from Wristwatch, one of my favorite Madison bands—it’s a long list—and one from Maritime, one of my favorites from just down the road in Milwaukee. Our pal Jodaki also sent us one he thought I might like. He was right.
There’s some Lungfish, because of course there is. Indy-based indie darlings Wishy keep their streak of great singles going, and the latest from Afghan Whigs is finally out. It’s been a long time coming, but it was worth the wait.
Catacroma from Riviera Gaz also dropped, and if you like the sort of stuff Winged Wheel—or Lungfish, for that matter—puts out, this is for you. This is also a Steve Shelley side project; he’s having quite the year.
Last but not least, there’s a track each from ORR favorites Wussy and The Paranoid Style. Lisa Walker and Elizabeth Nelson are pairing up for a series of upcoming house shows, and, well, if your favorite baseball team is in the NL Central, gas up the car and make a plan to get out and see them. There are a couple of East Coast dates, too.
KA—
The Playlist:
Other sources: | Apple | Qobuz | YouTube Music| Tidal (NEW) |
I’m trying Tidal out after getting a couple of requests for it. We’ll see how it goes! Mostly, I’d like to slowly move away from Spotify and make sure we’ve got as many bases covered as possible.
Now it’s your turn.
What’s been exciting you lately? Any releases or shows you’re looking forward to? Whatcha got? Share your thoughts in the comments!
Kevin Sent 