Bob Drake: The Skull Mailbox (and Other Horrors)

In honor of October i am giving you the creepiest album ever recorded.  I know there are a million "laptop artists" out there who twiddle knobs and try to make scary albums that, to me, aren't scary due to their mechanical nature. I mean, Lustmord is terrifying but this album sneaks up on you in the best way. With stories.  What grabs you initially is the stories in each song. They are yarns spun of people whose lives you would never want to be in contact with for fear of becoming involved with their awful fates. I grew up in New England where you couldn't swing a dead cat without hearing a thousand stories of the occult and this is what draws me to these songs. They feel real and a definite part of Americana. I could see Bob Drake touring with Earth (new Earth, not old).  You may laugh at the sheer absurdity of the songs at first but you will be sleeping with the light on for a few days, i assure you. These are like adult versions of those "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark" books from when you were a kid. Listen to this alone and at night. Happy early Halloween.

Listen Carefully and Safely

The Orphee Suite for Piano: the music of Philip Glass

Aside from the first track being some jaunty little piano ditty that i skip over every time, this album is amazing. i would do research and tell you all about how and why this was made but i would be doing you a disservice. If you like your piano to be beautiful and sad and to embrace the darkness, this is for you. At night, i run to this album.  Except for the first track. 

HERE BE DOWNLODEZ

Sally Shapiro - Disco Romance

The title of the album should have been the first thing to make me skip over this. Two words "disco" and "romance". No thanks, right? Wrong. This is the album you never take off your iPod when you are putting a bunch of new shit on it. Whenever you say "Oh, i am going to listen to all that stuff i have and never listen to" make sure you leave a few MB's for this album because when you realize that most Radiohead is shitty and repetitive, you will be happy you kept this on the old iPizzle. Disco Romance could not have been a better title for this.  i naturally assume that they will now go back in time and make every artist change their album titles to more suit their sound. Ramones "Poppy Fast Music" , John Coltrane "Influential Spazz Garbage That White Dudes Love", Nickleback "Creed", Air "Electronic French Sex Music" and so on and so forth.

Hold me so tight... then download me

Amon Duul II: Lemmingmania

Well this is Amon Duul II so you know it is going to be good and maybe a little great or vice versa. The best review i have ever heard about these dudes (or "duudes") is that they are Germany's Fleetwood Mac (both pre-and post Peter Green, in my opinion). Seriously though, Archangel Thunderbird might be the greatest song ever written. This isn't a proper album as much as it is a collection of singles but i think it does a great job of introducing you to their entire range. At least this will give you two great songs for mix tapes: the above mentioned one and Burning Sister. You will be so cool in your friends eyes! Be warned: this dude has a crazy voice and if you have a closed mind and you are an idiot, you might not like it.

DL this album with a rad album cover

William Basinski: Melancholia

After only hearing the Disintegration Loops i was really surprised at how clean and nice this album sounds. It sounds like that part in the movie where the main character's wife dies or when he realizes his life is shit, but then things get better. Please listen to this responsibly or you might become too calm and relax all over the place. I listened to this on a bus ride to Valencia and woke up when the record ended and even though i was on a cramped bus seat, i felt good. Thanks, Bill.

D'ownload