COMPUTER COUGAR

[Download "Too Much" from Rough Notes on High Stress]

The lack of updates is due to the fact that I am in Costa Rica, and will be for at least the next two weeks. So this will prbably be the last post until I get back.

Apparantly not much is known about Computer Cougar. I was just lucky enough to stumble upon this Gern Blandsten release one day while browsing the free bin at FBC. The music is fast simple garage rock, and i love it. There is not much left to say really, except that they include members of Rorshach, Born Against, Greyhouse, and the owner of Gern Blandsten Records. Just scope it, you will like.

-Miike

THE SKOLARS/TELEGRAPH

[Download "American Way" from Quit Your Band] EXPIRED

In keeping with the trend of posting music from my past, I decided a little Ska was in order. Yea fuck you, I liked Ska. Big deal, what 14 year old wouldn't? There still remains a side of me that cannot resist fast upbeat guitars closely followed by someone yelling "pick it up, pick it up". Seriously though, for me Ska was more than just goofy suits and horns. It was mainly about the unity, and how close those old ska bands brought people in my area together. At the end of the '90s not a single weekend passed without at least 50 different ska bands playing somewhere in Flint or Detroit.

In '98 The Skolars were at the top of Metro Detroit's booming Ska scene. They played anywhere and everywhere at anytime. People loved them and word started to spread. In order to avoid legal trouble with about a million other bands, The Skolars became Telegraph. For the next few years Telegraph continued to play shows and even signed a deal with Jump Up! Records. As the decade faded away, so did Ska. Coincidentally, Telegraph struggled to mantain their following. A bold choice was then made by the band, they just weren't going to play ska music anymore. The group ditched all their old material, changed their named to The Telegraph and started fresh. The end result was the heavily hyped album, Switched On. Switched On was a bland and seemingly careless combination of poprock and horns. The album ultimately flopped and the band called it quits. American Way is off their sophmore effort, Quit Your Band. This is undeniably one of the greatest examples of North America's 3rd wave ska movement.

-Miike

MYCOMPLEX

[Download "We Have Seasons Here" from If We Keep Moving] EXPIRED
[Download "To Be Continued" from If We Keep Moving] EXPIRED

I've decided that it is time to dig deep. Time to offer some tunes from the time period when I first started to take music seriously. Music from my early days that exposed me to a world I had never experienced, and continues to influence me in one way or another.

Mycomplex is one of the first local bands that I ever payed attention to. I was given their demo at Detroit's Pharoah's Golden Cup back in '97. I was in seventh grade at the time, never heard anything like it and was immediately hooked. After that I attended as many of their shows as a 12 year old could. Unfortunatly the bands career was short lived. Months after they hit the scene Cargo Music offered them a deal, and they took it. Excited by their new found success the band didn't hesitate to act and quickly entered the studio. If We Keep Moving was out in months, and a nationwide tour was in the works. Buuut, the band never made it that far. Weeks after the release the group disbanded and left this little boy very unhappy.

If We Keep Moving is simply a great album. The record is a masterful collection of ridiculously spazzed out power punk songs. The sound was completely original at the time and has ultimatley become one of the most influential math-rock albums to date. Al from Mycomplex currently fronts the popular group Rescue and the drummer plays with my least favorite band, ForDireLifeSake.

-Miike

FIFTEEN

[Download "World Starvation" from Buzz] EXPIRED
[Download "Ain't Life a Drag" from Ain't Life a Drag] EXPIRED

Fifteen is a very important band to me. East Bay punk rock bands like Fifteen, Operation Ivy, Basic Radio, Crimpshrine, and Isocracy taught me ideals I still hold true. Those bands exposed me to ideas and thoughts different from anything my parents or television had taught me. I began to realize that it is okay to question authority. Just because a person is in a position of power it does not mean that they are incapable of lying, stealing, and cheating. Another lesson learned is that your parents arn't always right. Not that I do not have enormous amounts of respect for my parents, but they are human and we make mistakes. Fifteen and the other groups helped me realize that I can make decisions for myself, and that it's okay to stray from the masses. All of which are important issues to a 14 year old that's attempting to find his place in the world.

Fifteen arose from the ashes of the equally as influential band, Crimpshrine. Jeff Ott fronted both groups and is in my eyes a punk rock legend. Fifteen released a dozen albums on a handful of labels including Lookout! and Hopeless Records. After about 8 "official" break-ups and a million line-up changes, Jeff called it quits. The tracks posted are off some of their earlier releases and give a pretty good notion of what they are all about.

-Miike

THE OLIVIA TREMOR CONTROL

[Download "The Opera House" from Dusk At Cubist Castle] EXPIRED

The Olivia Tremor Control were a great Pop group. They released a handful of albums for Elephant Six and Flydaddy in the '90s then broke up. Dusk At Cubist Castle is one of those "could have been great" pop albums. I say "could have been great" because the whole concept of the album lies just beyond the realm of the mainstream. Dusk.. is almost exclusively influenced by Sgt. Pepper's.. and Pet Sounds. Annnd.. I don't really know what else to say. TOTC is an exceptionally good rock band that had huge potential, and I enjoy every minute of this album.

-Miike

DANIELSON FAMILE

[Download "Rallying The Dominos" from Fetch The Compass Kids]
[Download "Good News for the Pus Pickers" from Fetch The Compass Kids]

I don't really know why I am posting Danielson Famile tracks on here. No one I know likes them or cares about them. But somehow they remain to be one of the most critically accaimled indie acts around. The Danielson Famile started out as a family band that performed songs that frontman, Daniel Smith composed for his classes at Rutgers University. In fact, their first official release, A Prayer for Every Hour, was Smith's senior thesis project. Needless to say he got an 'A'.

The Danielson Famile play some of the most eccentric alternative folk music I have ever heard. Smith sings almost exclusivly in a very high pitched falsetto voice, that you have to love for the sake of sheer obscurity. All of their songs carry a positive and sometimes Christian message. Don't let that scare you away though, their style of music just wouldn't fit with anything but a lighthearted and upbeat agenda. Fetch The Compass Kids is an earlier release, and probably their most mainstream. They almost scored a hit with Rallying The Dominos, but could never break out of the underground. In addition to still touring and recording with The Famile, Smith's solo project, Br. Danielson has been a huge success and currently sells out tours around the world.

-Miike

THE SHINS

[Download "Eating Styes From Elephant Eyes" from Nature Bears a Vacuum] EXPIRED

Yes kids there are other Shins albums besides Chutes Too Narrow. In fact, this track comes from what is in my opinion their craziest album to date. In 1998 Omnibus released Nature Bears a Vacuum. If you only know current Shin's, this album may take a little getting used to. Nature.. is definetly more lo-fi, more experimental, and more obnoxious than what you may be used to. The tracks are shorter than your typical Shins song. The album bounces all over the place, but remains upbeat. There also seems to be an abundance of slide whistle on most tracks. Regardless of what your little sister says, this is a good album. Any real Shins fan should have a copy in their collection.

-Miike

BRITISH SEA POWER

[Download "Remember Me" from The Decline of British Sea Power] EXPIRED

I would like to start out by saying British Sea Power is a killer name for a band. If it wasn't taken I'd use it. BSP is obviously a British musical group. They are based out of Brighton, East Sussex. Unfortunatly, I havn't had the opportunity to listen to The Decline Of.. in its entirty. This is partly due to the fact no record stores near me carries any BSP. As a result, I am really in no position to comment on the album as a whole. I can say Remember Me is a sweet rock and roll song. If you want, you can read what Pitchfork had to say about the album.

-Miike

VINCENT GALLO

[Download "Moonchild (King Crimson Cover)" from The Buffalo '66 Soundtrack] EXPIRED

Everybody knows Vincent Gallo. He is the self-proclaimed worlds greatest director, composer, lovemaker, photography, actor, and asshole. But it's not like all this ego is for nothing. Gallo just happens to be a pretty good actor, okay director, and incredible musician. Gallo's musical career spans just about his entire life, forming his first band, The Blue Mood, in 1971. The music is influenced by a broad spectrum of genres, ranging from prog rock to folk to hip-hop.

The Buffalo '66 Soundtrack is an excellent display of Gallo's talent as a musician. This soundtrack consists mainly of original tracks composed specifically for the movie. The song posted is an amazing cover of King Crimson's Moonchild. And it just so happens that King Crimson is one of my favorite bands.

-Miike

JOANNA NEWSOM

[Download "Sadie" from Milk Eyed Mender] EXPIRED

I don't know much about Joanna Newsom. I think she is a relatively new musician, or she is just now breaking into the scene. Joanna plays the harp..and thats about it. But don't get me wrong, this is some very interesting music. The songs consist of unusual harp melodies which accompany Newsome's mewing vocals. Milk Eyed Mender is bound to bum out at least half of your friends. In other words, lots of people will not like it. But I do, so give it a try. The album came out in '04 on Drag City Records.

-Miike