Some Really Good Bands

Pop Will Eat Itself

2007-02-11T18:16:00.000+09:00

Who?
Pop Will Eat Itself/PWEI/The Poppies still have a loyal following. Known for their wit and mockery of the industry around them, they experimented with a range of styles.

There Is No Love Between Us Anymore

Listen
This band had such a evolving musical journey, it's worth getting a hold of a range of their stuff.

Desert Island Disc
All their albums are great in their own style. Dos Dedos Mis Amigos.

Lyrics

Welcome to a state where the politics of hate
Shout loud in the crowd "Watch them beat us all down."
There's a rising tide on the rivers of blood
But if the answer isn't violence, neither is your silence
Ich Bin Ein Auslander

Fun Facts

The Poppies became the first band to appear on Britain's Top of the Pops without being signed to a major label when RCA dumped them right before Get the Girl! Kill the Baddies! became their biggest commercial success.
The band has designed around 100 hugely popular t-shirts with outlandish desgns and slogans, such as taking the Pepsi logo and replaced it with PWEI

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links go here

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Panic! At The Disco

2007-02-11T17:42:00.000+09:00

Who?
A recent band with growing popularity. Their music is a fusion between punk, pop, dance, electronica and rock. Just don't call them emo! (Or at least not to their faces).

I Write Sins Not Tragedies

Listen
Lying is the Most Fun a Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off. It's also the name of this track

Desert Island Disc
Their only studio album so far is 2005's A Fever You Can't Sweat Out

Lyrics

The Only Difference Between Martyrdom And Suicide Is Press Coverage
These aren't lyrics at all but the name of a song

Fun Facts

Panic! recorded “A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out” for only $10,000.
The singles "Lying Is the Most Fun a Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off" and "But It's Better If You Do" make up a line from the 2004 film Closer

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links go here

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Portishead

2007-02-11T14:41:00.000+09:00

Who?
Haunting, melodic, soulful and jazzy, this lo-fi triphop band first came to public attention in the mid 90's.

Listen
A couple of tracks to enjoy

Desert Island Disc
Dummy is the album I'm more familiar with.

Lyrics

Give me a reason to be a woman
I just wanna be a woman
So don't you stop being a man
Glory Box

Fun Facts
Portishead reject the tag triphop, calling it a media invention

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links go here

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Pearl Jam

2007-02-11T12:45:00.000+09:00

Who?
When this band swept onto the world music in the early 90's, I remember vividly, standing quite still, feeling an overwhelming sense of hope for the future of music. Pioneers of grunge and the Seattle sound, their songs have stood the test of time.

Listen
They have many great tracks and a wonderful collection of b-sides. Here are some of their best known tracks.

Desert Island Album
While I love the collection of b-sides Lost Dogs, my definitive desert island pick is of course Ten

Lyrics

Sheets of empty canvas
Untouched sheets of clay
Were laid spread out before me
As her body once did.
Black

Fun facts

The band was originally called Mookie Blaylock after the basketball player
Pearl Jam did not release any videos or singles from their second album Vs in 1993. It debuted at No. 1 and went multi-platinum.
Pearl Jam testified against Ticketmaster in front of the Justice Department citing unfair business practices and only played at small venues during the mid 90s.

I want more
links go here

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PJ Harvey

2007-02-11T11:23:00.000+09:00

Who?
PJ Harvey (Polly Jean) is a sassy, sexy, gritty singer/songwriter/musician from Britain. She is a consummate performer and plays with brash, high charged energy.

Listen...

Desert Island Album...
My pick would be Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea

Lyrical excerpt...
PJ is always poetic in how she expresses herself

Ten thousand willing
Pilots flying
Interfacing
Space and beyond
Built an army
To come and find me
Kamikaze

Fun facts...

PJ Harvey is a published poet and trained sculptor who has exhibited her work.
She produced the album Uh Huh Her herself and plays every instrument on every track.
PJ grew up on a sheep farm in the English countryside
She has her own myspace page with 16955 friends at the time of this posting

I want more...
links go here

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The Pixies

2007-02-11T01:20:00.000+09:00

Who?
Melodic, cryptic, witty.. THE alternative rock band that gave birth to an entire genre. Influenced by - oh so many styles - and paying it forward with so many wonderful influences in return on bands that have come and gone.

Debaser

Listen
Where is My Mind? is, imho, the best song ever written.

Desert Island Disc
Going with Surfer Rosa here.

Lyrics

With your feet in the air and your head on the ground
Try this trick and spin it, yeah!
Where is my Mind?
Inspiring gmail addresses since 2007

Fun Facts

(bassist) Kim Deal once said "Actually, I don't even know the words to a lot of the songs. And they've never been explained to me."
the band was originally "Pixies in Panalopy" but they decided to shorten it

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links go here

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Pulp

2007-02-11T00:17:00.000+09:00

Who?
I don't appreciate disco. I don't appreciate pop. I appreciate this disco/pop rock band. If you listen to this band, your life will actually become better before the track has finished.

Listen
Listen to all of these! Really great.

Desert Island Disc
Different Class - This album doesn't just complete your record collection, it replaces your record collection.

Lyrics

I took her to a supermarket
I don't know why
But I had to start it somewhere
So it started there
Common People

Fun Facts

Jarvis formed the band as a 15 year old school boy
William Shatner (Captain Kirk) covered the song Common People on his album (name)

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links go here

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Placebo

2007-02-10T23:20:00.000+09:00

Who?
Placebo write terrific, original witty songs with messy lyrics and gritty themes. They have their own unique sound and are probably my favourite band in the known universe.

Listen
The Placebo sound.

Desert Island Disc
Hardly my definitive choice - going with Black Market Music by a narrow margin.

Lyrics

Kind of buzz that lasts for days
had some help from insect ways
comes across all shy and coy
just another nancy boy.
Nancy Boy

Fun Facts

The band are well known for their diverse sexual preferences: Stefan Olsdal is homosexual, Steve Hewitt is heterosexual and gorgeous, gorgeous Brian Molko is bisexual.
Brian once worked in a bank shredding documents.
The song This Picture about "the ashtray girl" was inspired by James Dean.

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links go here

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Pink Floyd

2007-02-10T19:14:00.000+09:00

Who?
Pink Floyd have created some of the most memorable and influential music ever recorded, inspiring and continuing to inspire musicians all over the globe.

Listen
Wish You Were Here was voted most popular Pink floyd song (link).

Desert Island Disc
This is so tough. I keep flipping over which to list. Gah. Can't not put Dark Side of the Moon. It's simply amazing.

Lyrics

And you run and you run to catch up with the sun, but it's sinking
And racing around to come up behind you again
The sun is the same, in a relative way, but you're older
Shorter of breath and one day closer to death
Time

Fun Facts
Their name is popularly believed to be inspired by two old time blues players Pink Anderson and Floyd Council. However, it has been argued (in The A-Z of Names in Rock) that Roger Waters got the name from a pair of cats living at his address.

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links go here

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