Mixtapes #6: Jessamyn West
The best of lists that pop up at the end of the year are often hobbled by chronology or genre. It suggests that listening begins in January and ends in December or that people are experts in only one kind of music. People never really only listened to that which was made in one year, and the modern rock crit area was birthed by professional nostalgists and crate diggers. In asking a variety of professionals to mark what they were really listening to while maintaining the concept of an annual I didn’t want to engage in that act of crate digging, but I really did want to get a sense of what people were listening to. Think of it as the games people play with mix tapes, if mix tapes where really about what people listened to in 2006. The entries, comments (if offered) and biographies (if offered) are written by the critics (with their own eccentricities) themselves and they are arranged by their arrival in my inbox.
Jessamyn West
Bio:
Jessamyn West is a librarian and community technologist in Central Vermont. When she's not teaching seniors how to use email or putting wifi in tiny libraries she helps run the community weblog MetaFilter.com. She also maintains her own websites at jessamyn.com and librarian.net.
Albums
The Benders - S/T (2001, PigPile)
Bow Thayer lives near here and I always feel like these songs are being sung by one of my neighbors.Hüsker Dü - New Day Rising (1985, SST)
I moved from Seattle to Vermont a few years back and every time I see the sun shine in the winter I want to yell the lyrics to the title track of this album.Antifolk - Volume 1 (2002, Rough Trade)
These songs don't sound like anti-anything, they make me feel like anyone could get a guitar and go be in a band and be awesome.Beausoleil - L'amour Ou La Folie (1997, Rhino)
My French is lousy, I think all of these songs are about building pillow forts.Holy Fuck - S/T (2005, Dependent Music)
I saw these guys last year. They are like copping a sweaty feel when your Mom is alseep upstairs just old school energy.Best of Fono Records (?, Fono Records)
I was in a magazine store and this was playing and I said "what is this?" and bought it on the spot. It was a promotional CD that came with some magazine I have long since forgotten. Sweet gypsy yowling.The Beta Band - The Three EPs (1998, Astralwerks)
People wouldn't goof on the idea of mantras if they al sounded like they were spoken by the Beta Band.Ancient Mariners Chanteymen - Turnin' the Tide (1993, self published)
I have a friend who works in a history museum and used to work at Mystic Seaport. I stayed at her house over Labor Day when I was having a bad time (and it was my birthday) and listened to sea chanties all weekend. Then I felt better.Golden Delicious/Pete Krebs - (1998, Cavity Search)
Why Pete Krebs is not the righteous star of everything, I have no idea.Joel RL Phelps & The Downer Trio - 3 (1998, Pacifico Recordings)
Ditto Joel RL Phelps and everything he touches.
Songs
Four in the Morning - Jesse Colin Young (1964)
2006 had a lot of four in the morning nights, but thankfully few roof leaks. This song is like a warm fire in a cold cold house.The Pursuit of Happiness - 15-16 Puzzle (?)
One of the guys from MetaFilter did this. It's nice to be happy about *something* having to do with government in the US lately.This Old Love - Lior (2004) & Lighthouse - The Waifs (2004)
I am going to Australia in a few weeks and a friend made me an Australian mixtape with both of these great songs on it.Homage to Patagonia - Lemon Jelly (2000)
Usually I like lyrics, but I just want to dance around in the backyard when this song is on.Weightless Again - Handsome Family (1999)
They sing this song and you totally know what they're talking about. This song makes me miss drugs.Transistor Radio - Cloud Cult (1995)
I have a mix that is all these "hey let's you and I play little kids together" songs and this is my favorite one.Slipstream - Silkworm (1991)
I moved to Seattle in 1990 and fell hard in love with Silkworm and all their delicious edges.House Carpenter - Dave Van Ronk (1969)
I have a soft spot for trad. arr. songs including this one and Shady Grove. For anyone who has fallen for a man that was SO wrong for them, this is a cautionary tale.Shopping for Explosives - Coconut Monkeyrocket (??)
Say it with me Co Co Nut Mon Key ROCKET! This song is fun and it's part of a free-like-beer album on the Comfort Stand label.
