From: Sean Christopher Duncan <seand-NOSPAM@BGNet.bgsu.edu>
To: dougo@ccs.neu.edu
Subject: listlistlist
Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 20:39:35 -0500 (EST)
Reply-To: Sean Christopher Duncan <seand-NOSPAM@BGNet.bgsu.edu>


MY PAL DOUG,

In keeping with my listening trends for the past several years, I
didn't listen to a lot of new releases in 1998.  If any of the albums
listed below happened to be released in previous years, well, that's
unfortunate, but I just discovered them this year.  In no order, listed
below.

* Blonde Redhead, _In an Expression of the Inexpressible_, CD, Touch & Go
* Sonic Youth, _Silver Session for Jason Knuth_, CD, SYR
* Sean Lennon, _Into the Sun_, CD, Capitol
* The Promise Ring, _Boys & Girls EP_, 7", Jade Tree
* Rainer Maria, _Past Worn Searching_, CD, Polyvinyl (Released Nov, '97)
* Low (and sundry remixers), _owL_, CD, Vernon Yard
    [Note: really, it's just the Porter Ricks remix of "Down" that I
     liked, so if you're ranking individual tunes, replace the Low CD
     with that.]
* Linton Kwesi Johnson, _Independent Intavenshun_, CD, Island (reissue?)
* Tortoise, _TNT_, CD, Thrill Jockey
* Trans Am, _Surveillance_, CD, Thrill Jockey

Plus, I've been listening to Galaxie 500 like crazy since August or so.
But, since they didn't release anything new in the past year, I guess
it doesn't count, which isn't really too fair, but what are you gonna do?
Oh, and this Tele:Funken/Flying Saucer Attack CD came out in 1996, but I
must admit to listening to it nearly daily.

The releases which I most loathed or was the most disappointed by during
the past year:

* Belle & Sebastian, _The Boy with the Arab Strap_, CD, Matador
  -- The most overhyped piece of tripe I've heard in ages.  Will go the
	way of Chavez and other style-over-substance bands.

* Shellac, _Terraform_, LP, Touch & Go
  -- Please let this be just another sophomore slump.  "Copper" is great,
	the Bonestell art is great, the rest is shit.

* Gaunt, _Bricks & Blackouts_, CD, Warner
  -- Didn't these guys once have something of an edge?  Probably not, oh
	well.

* Jonathan Richman, _I'm so Confused_, CD, Vapor
  -- If you're going to just rerecord the same songs over and over again,
	then at least be honest about it and give the songs different
	titles.

If any of these get votes from anyone else, please subtract a point from
their totals to reflect my utter and vitriolic dislike of the records.

Thanks!

--
Sean C. Duncan, http://www.bgsu.edu/~seand
Dept. of Psychology, Bowling Green State University