Friday Playlist - 1/25

Tracklist:
American Aquarium - Savannah Almost Killed Me / Dillinger Four - Shiny Things is Good / Oxford Collapse - Please Visit Your National Parks / The Bootheel - Northsider / Drive By Truckers - Birthday Boy / Avail - August / Broadway Calls - Open Letter / Archers of Loaf - Might / The Scandals - Mountain Ave. / Hostage Calm - On Both Eyes / Have Gun Will Travel - To the Victor Go the Spoils / Titus Andronicus - In a Big City / Dear Landlord - High Fives / Black Wine - Burlap / Chris Wollard & The Ship Thieves - Exception / Alone at 3am - A Change is Coming

DPDC Friday Playlist 1/25/13

Friday Playlist - 1/18

Tracklist:
Joyce Manor - Bride of Usher / Boston Spaceships - Come on Baby Grace / Banner Pilot - Skeleton Key / Dorado - Molotovs / Tenement - Stupid Werld / Doc Dailey & Magnolia Devil - Sunday School / Parkas - Toronto Enough Tonight / Samiam - Ordinary Life / Paint Branch - Brighton Beach / Hot Water Music - Hit or Miss / Water Liars - Whoa Back / The Menzingers - Who's Your Partner / Timeshares - Damn Near By Beer / Tim Barry - Tacoma

DPDC Friday Playlist 1/18/13

Friday Playlist - 1/11

Tracklist:
Arliss Nancy - Front Seat / Dinosaur Jr. - Almost Ready / Red City Radio - Two for Flinching / Micah Schnabel - Throwing Rocks at the Sun / The District Attorneys - The End / The New Lows - Ghost / Alkaline Trio - Message from Kathleen / Truckstop Darlin' - Sad Sweet Songs / Money/Paper/Hearts - Pretty Pamphlets / The Evens - King of Kings / John K. Samson - Highway 1 West / White Lung - Take the Mirror / The Snips - Blood Maps / Lucero - Hey Darlin' do You Gamble? / Jen Buxton - Don't Change Your Plans

DPDC Friday Playlist - 1/11

Friday Playlist - 12/21

Tracklist:
Luther - Two Anglers / Gameday Regulars - Heavy Bikes / Rocky Votolato - The Light and The Sound / Lucero - And We Fell / The Sidekicks - Grace / Jawbreaker - Chesterfield King / Adam Faucett - Blood is Blood / Cat Power - Metal Heart / Placeholder - Resent / We Are Augustines - Chapel Heart / Jeffrey Foucault - Cold Satellite / American Princes - Providence, RI / The Magnificent - BBQ & Grasshoppers / Signals Midwest - The Weight & The Waiting / Chris Bathgate - Salt Year

DPDC Friday Playlist - 12/21

Centro-matic 24 Song Free Sampler

You're probably familiar with 'em, but Centro-matic is and has been consistently putting out incredible albums for a decade and a half (not to mention Will Johnson's solo and South San Gabriel releases).

If you don't have their stuff already and are looking to get into the extensive, and wholly worthwhile catalog, here's a good place to start.

Listen below or go to the bandcamp page for the full download.

Special Friday Playlist - 12/14 - 2011 Revisited

All of this year end list making, has me mulling over and revisiting several albums that, in retrospect, were notably absent from my Best of 2011 list and probably deserved inclusion (not that I'd want to bump anything from the original list, which you can find here).  So I thought I'd devote today's playlist to songs from those albums. Hope you enjoy.

DPDC Friday Playlist - 12/14 - 2011 Revisited

Tracklist: (Album)
Frank Turner - I Am Disappeared (England Keep My Bones)
Centro-Matic - All the Talkers (Candidate Waltz)
John Moreland & The Dust Bowl Souls - Christmas Lights (Everything the Hard Way)
Fucked Up - Queen of Hearts (David Comes to Life)
Wild Flag - Future Crimes (S/T)
Arliss Nancy - Wrong or Right (Dance to Forget)
Lydia Loveless - More Like Them (Indestructible Machine)
The Holy Mess - Goodbye 3713 (S/T)
13 Ghosts - Gimme Back (Liar's Melody)
Joyce Manor - Constant Headache (S/T)
Nothington - Far to Go (Borrowed Time)
Young Statues - Bumble Bee (S/T)
Those Darlins - Be Your Bro (Screws Get Loose)
Samiam - 80 West (Trips)
The 65's - No One Cares About Your Tears (Strike Hard!)
Mount Moriah - Lament (S/T)

2012 Best Songs from the Rest

Since I struggled so much in narrowing down my favorite albums list, and under the dangerous assumption that you aren't completely over year end lists (mine and everyone else's), I've decided to rattle off some of my favorite songs of the year from artists/bands who didn't quite make the "Best of" list.  Some of these are  the hands down greatest of the year.

DPDC Best Songs from the Rest 2012

John K. Samson - When I Write My Master's Thesis (Provincial)
Glocca Morra - Ya'll Boots Hats? (Just Married)
Torche - Kicking (Harmonicraft)
Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires - Centreville (There is a Bomb in Gilead)
You Blew It! - Terry vs. Tori (Grow Up, Dude)
Waxahatchee - Be Good (American Weekend)
A Giant Dog - Cowboy (Fight)
Paws - Pony. (Cokefloat!)
Sam Russo - Factory Rain (Storm)
Cat Power -Ruin (Sun)
Bob Mould - Silver Age (Silver Age)
Bohannons - The River Above (Unaka Rising)
Grass Giraffes - Backstories (Transporation EP)
Dr. Dog - How Long Must I Wait (Be the Void)
Slingshot Dakota - Gossip (Dark Hearts)
Chuck Prophet - Castro Halloween (Temple Beautiful)
The Sparklers - Gunfire & Confetti (Crying at the Low Bar)
Royal Headache - Really in Love (S/T)
Dikembe - Apology Not Fucking Accepted (Broad Shoulders)
Teenage Bottlerocket - Go With the Flow (Freak Out!)
Bruce Springsteen - Wrecking Ball (Wrecking Ball)
The Whigs - Tiny Treasures (Enjoy the Company)
Sundials - Completely Broken (When I Couldn't Breathe)
The Mountain Goats - Amy aka Spent Gladiator
Best Coast - The Only Place (The Only Place) 

DPDC Best Albums of 2012

So I'm actually managing to get this list up a little earlier than anticipated, considering I was originally targeting next week. The list was both easy and difficult to compile, in that there were tons of incredible full-length albums released this year, so many in fact it was incredibly hard to pare them down to a Top 30 (which is incidentally the arbitrary number I decided to go with).

The Menzingers album is my definitive favorite with the rest in loose order of preference. As suggested all are must listen/have, and there are probably 30 more albums that in most years would've made the primary list. See the Top 30 and accompanying playlist (which a track from each) below.

DPDC Best of 2012

1. The Menzingers - On the Impossible Past
2. American Aquarium - Burn.Flicker.Die
3. Cloud Nothings - Attack on Memory
4. Red Collar - Welcome Home
5. Cory Branan - Mutt
6. Downtown Struts - Victoria!
7. Japandroids - Celebration Rock
8. Gaslight Anthem - Handwritten
9. The District Attorneys - Slowburner
10. Wood Ear - Steeple Vultures
11. Arliss Nancy - Simple Machines (Song on PL from previous EP, Simple Machines not on Spotify)
12. Titus Andronicus - Local Business
13. Swearin' - Self Titled
14. Alone at 3am - Midwest Mess
15. Truckstop Darlin' - Hope and the Heart it Breaks
16. Luther - Let's Get You Somewhere Else
17. The Evening Rig - Nothin' to Hear Here
18. Arms Aloft - Sawdust City
19. Damien Jurado - Maraqopa
20. Lucero - Women & Work
21. Father John Misty - Fear Fun
22. Langhorne Slim - The Way We Move
23. Title Fight - Floral Green
24. Apologies I Have None - London
25. Fistful of Beard - Until We Know Better
26. Bedford Falls - Elegant Balloons
27. Sharon Van Etten - Tramp
28. Dinosaur Jr. - I Bet on Sky
29. Cheap Girls - Giant Orange
30. JKutchma & The Five Fifths - Pastorals


It was tough to leave off releases from Hop Along, Nude Beach, Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires, Bob Mould, Paws, Teenage Bottlerocket, Hot Water Music, Lower Dens, Doc Dailey & Magnolia Devil, Sam Russo, Waxahatchee, The Holy Mess and many more.

Check out the previous "Quarterly Reports" that cover some of the omitted albums.

DPDC 3Q2012 Quarterly Report
DPDC 2Q2012 Quarterly Report
DPDC 1Q2012 Quarterly Report 

Favorite EPs/7"s of 2012

While I plan to post my "Best of 2012 Albums" list next week, listening to Joey Kneiser's EP over the past couple of days had me thinking of some of my other preferred shorter run stuff that doesn't qualify for full album status, and I thought I'd wet everyone's appetite for the full list (to the extent you had one) with that.

I've also included a playlist with a track from each.

DPDC Favorite EPs of 2012

In no particular order . . . (except I absolutely love the new Two Cow and Restorations 7"s, plus Moonlight for a Graveyard Heart).

Two Cow Garage - Geri/Shaking an Accent

Restorations - A/B

Joey Kneiser - Moonlight for the Graveyard Heart

State Lines - S/T

The District Attorneys -  Jr.

Tedo Stone - Happy EP

Dave Hause - EP Series (Pray for Tuscon, Heavy Heart, Time will Tell, Resolutions, C'mon Kid)

Rejectioneers - 25 EP

Through the Sparks - Alamalibu

Elway - Hence My Optimism

Real Friends - Everyone that Dragged you Here

Todd Farrell - Where Fake Cowboys Go to Drink

Prawn - Ships

Occult Detective Club - Alright Gentlemen

Denney and the Jets - S/T

Let me know what's missing, I'm sure there are several.

Joey Kneiser - Moonlight for The Graveyard Heart

The new EP from Joey Kneiser (of Glossary) "Moonlight for The Graveyard Heart" is out officially today via This is American Music. Pardon the expression, but like everything he touches it's golden. Stream it below and head over to their site to pick it up for $4. While you're there you should also grab his previous release "All Night Bedroom Revival" if it's still available (I believe it's free).  If you're without Glossary's stuff it's waiting for you at their bandcamp page so please don't waste any more time.

Friday Playlist - 12/7

Tracklist:
Two Cow Garage - Geri / Dillinger Four - Shiny Things is Good / Fake Problems - Born & Raised / The Hold Steady - Sequestered in Memphis / Cymbals Eat Guitars - Keep Me Waiting / Tegan and Sara - I Won't Be Left / The Heat Tape - Rich Man / Hop Along - Sally II / Aloha - Moonless March / White Wives - Hungry Ghosts / Descendents - Hope / East Cameron Folkcore - Hollow Men / Great Lakes, USA - LF, DW / Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit - Codeine / Graham Lindsey - If I Ever Make It Home

DPDC Friday Playlist - 12/7

New Two Cow Garage!

I'm about a week late to the game on this one, but a perennial favorite Two Cow Garage just introduced a limited release 7" (400 copies) with two brand new songs, "Geri" and "Shaking an Accent,"  both of which are fuckin GREAT, on Last Chance Records. Listen below. Turn It Up. Head over to Last Chance to purchase the record here, before it's too late, if it's not already.

Friday Playlist - 11/30

Tracklist:
Elway - Passing Days / Superchunk - My Gap Feels Weird / Glossary - Devil's in the Details / Chuck Prophet - Castro Halloween / Joshua Black Wilkins & The Forty Volts - Jaded / The Living Daylights - The Recovery / Off With Their Heads - Drive / Run, Forever - Sun Bruised / Blacklist Royals - Gina / Swearin' - Here to Hear / The Swellers - The Best I Ever Had / Garden Variety - Rode (for Justin) / Phoenix - Lasso / Joie De Vivre - Salt / Lauderdale - Big Fish

DPDC Friday Playlist - 11/30

Friday Playlist - 11/16

Tracklist:
Cheap Girls - All My Clean Friends / Kite Party - Runner / Best Practices - Future Cougar / Rocky Votolato - Streetlights / Doc Dailey & Magnolia Devil - She Has Her Moments / The Menzingers - Casey / Joyce Manor - Video Killed the Radio Star / Jawbox - Static / The Arrivals - Simple Pleasures in America / Forgetters - Les Arrivistes / Austin Lucas - She Did / Future Virgins - Troubled Heart / Title Fight - Calloused / District Attorneys - I Can't Make the Distance You'll Have to Meet Me Halfway / The Wooden Birds - Two Matchsticks / Restorations - Broken Vacuum / Japandroids - Adrenaline Nightshift / The National - Lemonworld / Timeshares - Damn Near by Beer / War Jacket - Part of the World I Like

DPDC Friday Playlist - 11/16

Friday Playlist - 11/9

Tracklist:
Titus Andronicus - Ecce Homo / Two Cow Garage - Your Humble Narrator / John Moreland - Christmas Lights / Lydia Loveless - More Like Them / Samiam - Bad Day / Real Friends - Anchor Down / Against Me! - I Was A Teenage Anarchist / Slingshot Dakota - Michael Jordan Saved My Life / Braid - Urbana's Too Dark / Johnny Foreigner - Salt, Pepa and Spinderella / 500 Miles to Memphis - The Regret / Lauderdale - Wasted Life / Title Fight - Stab / Will Johnson - Closing Down My House

DPDC Friday Playlist - 11/9

Friday Playlist - 11/2

Tracklist:
Rural Alberta Advantage - Drain the Blood / Crazy Arm - Little Boats / Joyce Manor - Constant Headache / Fistful of Beard - White Bluff / Rejectioneers - Murderers / Glocca Morra - Ya'll Boots Hats? (Die Angry) / Truckstop Darlin' - Don't Walk Away / CSTVT - Bike Notes / El Cantador - The Brakes / Black Wine - Through the Foam / Arms Aloft - Skinny Love / Tommy Stinson - Meant to Be / Wild Flag - Electric Band / Sam Russo - Tinned Peaches

DPDC Friday Playlist - 11/2

Friday Playlist - 10/26

Tracklist:
Frank Turner - To Absent Friends / Arliss Nancy - Wind and Sirens / Helium - Honeycomb / American Gun - Heart Locket /  Red City Radio - Drinking Yourself into the Future / Father John Misty - I'm Writing a Novel / Cory Branan - The Freefall / Centro-Matic - Calling Thermatico / Propagandhi - Gifts / The Holy Mess - Goodbye 3713 / Grass Giraffes - Backstories / Failure's Union - The New Walk Home / The Weight - Johnny's Song / Caitlin Rose - For the Rabbits

DPDC Friday Playlist - 10/26

DPDC Quarterly Report 3Q2012

Time for another summary of the best of the past three months of music, according to me. So take it for what it’s worth, but these are albums I think you should pick up.  It’s going to be incredibly tough narrowing down a year end list of favorites for 2012. Descriptions are brief because the list is long.

Follow the link below or use player at the bottom of the post to listen

DPDC 3Q2012 Quarterly Report

You can check out the lists for the first half of the year here and here respectively.

JKutchma & the Five Fifths – Pastorals: Well as I predicted last time around Jason Kutchma (of Red Collar) makes it on this list with his more twangy and soulful offering.

The Gaslight Anthem – Handwritten: You know what Gaslight Anthem sounds like. I’d probably wedge this album somewhere between American Slang and 59 Sound in terms of feel.

Dinosaur Jr. – I Bet on Sky:  The original trio reunited in 2005 and they have graced us with 3 nearly perfect albums since. I sincerely think this one is the best yet, and arguably their best to date period.

American Aquarium - Burn.Flicker.Die: Similar to previous albums but i'd say they've expanded and improved their sound. More rock-y and melodic. Really earnest and clever songwriting. It's just damn good.

Downtown Struts - Victoria: Heartfelt punk rock, that's really catchy in a good way, with a nostalgic nod to bands like American Steel. Dueling vocals make me think a more poppy Dillinger Four.

Bob Mould - Silver Age:  Bob Mould is rockin' out again. Best stuff since Sugar, maybe better than than those albums.

Holy Mess - Cande Ru Las Degas: Less sloppy and frantic than their self-titled album. While I can't completely decide if that's for better or worse, it doesn't matter this album's great. For fans of bands like The Menzingers and Elway.

The Evening Rig - Nothin' to Hear Here:  I love this band.  They've picked up right where they left off with "Is Doin' Stuff." Do you like the Replacements?

Bedford Falls - Elegant Balloons: Guess you'd call this power pop. If you're into bands like Cheap Girls or Failure's Union, this'll be right down your alley. 

Nude Beach - II: Seen a lot of comparisons of Nude Beach to early Elvis Costello and 'Let it Be' era Replacements (which seem pretty apt) and to Tom Petty (which i get less). At some point newer bands and albums start becoming timeless in their own right, right?

Grizzly Bear - Shields: I've never really totally understood the fascination with this band and struggled to get into 'em.  With this album, no longer. Seems 'louder' (all relative) and less meticulous but somehow more cohesive.

Joel Plasket Emergency - Scrappy Happiness: Jangly heart on the sleeve indie rock with some classic and southern rock tendencies.

Title Fight - Floral Green: If Jawbreaker had been/become a hardcore band, I feel like they would've put out albums like Title Fight's "Shed" and "Floral Green." Certainly no complaints here. 

Bohannons - Unaka Rising: This is American Music has delivered yet another fantastic album from a largely unheralded band deserving of more attention.  Fundamentally Bohannons are southern rock . . .  with metal, blues, stoner, classic, and punk rock influences, which is to say this album is all over the map. It's eclectic, but in in heavy, fast, rock n roll way, rather than an experimental, pretentious, self indulgent one.

Sundials - When I Couldn't Breathe: Reminiscent of early Weezer albums, with a little more of a pop punk feel, which for me is a good thing.

In addition to those above there's a large laundry list of exceptional albums released in recent months  from Cat Power, Band of Horses, The Whigs, Will Johnson, Teenage Bottlerocket, Patterson Hood, Diiv, Dikembe, Jason Molina, Some Dark Holler, You Blew It!, Spider Bags, The XX, Chuck Prophet, Jr. Juggernaut, Two Gallants, Calexico,and Divine Fits. All of 'em are represented on the playlist so hope you've got some time on your hands.

On top of all of these Luther, The Pollies, Hostage Calm, Paws, Fistful of Beard, Bad Books, The Mountain Goats etc. have already come out with must have offerings in October.

Friday Playlist - 10/19

Tracklist:
Loved Ones - Player Hater Anthem / Drive-By Truckers - Women Without Whiskey / Have Gun Will Travel - Now I Lay Me Down / Elway - Aphorisms / Lucero - Last Night in Town / Ladyhawk - The Dugout / Nightlights - Are You The Keymaster? / Arkells - On Paper / Make Do and Mend - Keep This / Fistful of Beard - In the Casket / The Arteries - Mutual Friends / Restorations - When You're Older / Defiance Ohio - Hairpool / The Thermals - Pillar of Salt / Tim Barry - 222

DPDC Friday Playlist - 10/19

Very Full Docket of Late October DC Shows

Beginning tomorrow there is a crazy run of great shows to close out the month of October. So if you live, or will be, in DC (and don't have a 4 month old) you should take advantage. Almost too much to choose from, feels like feast or famine around here most of the time . . .

Thursday 10/17 
OFF! @ Black Cat 
Divine Fits @ 9:30 Club 
Hold Steady @ U Street Music Hall 
Davey Brown @ Velvet Lounge

Friday 10/19:
Hey Rosetta! @ Rock & Roll Hotel 

Saturday 10/20: 
Father John Misty @ Black Cat 

Sunday 10/21: 
Cheap Girls w/ The Front Bottoms @ DC9
The Flatliners & Dead to Me @ Black Cat (Opening for Lagwagon) 
Langhorne Slim @ Rock & Roll Hotel
Kopecky Family Band @ Iota

Monday 10/22 (couldn't we have combined or staggered these shows): 
Laura Stevenson and The Cans w/ The Wild @ Black Cat
Cat Power @ 9:30 Club

Tuesday 10/23:
King Tuff @ Black Cat
Milo Greene @ Rock & Roll Hotel
Franz Nicolay @ Iota

Wednesday 10/24:
Titus Andronicus w/ Ceremony @ Rock & Roll Hotel

Thursday 10/25 (wow what a night):
Dinosaur Jr. w/ Shearwater @ Black Cat
Sharon Von Etten w/ Damien Jurado @ 9:30 Club
Those Darlins @ DC9 

Friday 10/26:
AC Newman w/ The Mynabirds @ Black Cat
Old 97's @ 9:30 Club

Tuesday 10/30:
Heartless Bastards @ Black Cat

Wednesday 10/31
Freelance Whales @ 9:30 Club
Crooked Fingers w/ John Vanderslice @ Rock & Roll Hotel

Titus Andronicus - Local Business - Preview

NPR has offered up a stream of the new Titus Andronicus album 'Local Business,' which is officially due out next Tuesday 10/23.  It's a bit more melodic and less sprawling than 'The Monitor.' Actually upon first listen it's damn good and might be their best to date. Hear for yourselves below.

Friday Playlist - 10/12

Tracklist:
The Hold Steady - Magazines / The Pollies - Rebel Man / Constantines - Young Lions / American Aquarium - Abe Lincoln / Luther - The Concrete Sound / Alkaline Trio - San Francisco / Paws - Pony / Titus Andronicus - In a Big City / The Riot Before - We are Wild Stallions / Plants and Animals - Bye Bye Bye / Dear Landlord - Landlocked / Cory Branan - Karen's Song / Chase Fifty Six - Hey Bartender! / Bruce Springsteen - Used Cars

DPDC Friday Playlist - 10/12

Friday Playlist - 10/5

Tracklist:
Alone at 3am - Takes the Pain Away / You Blew It! - Terry vs. Tori / Through the Sparks - Warring Arms / Carpenter - Just Another Friday Night / Best Coast - Boyfriend / Fake Problems - Songs for Teenagers / Avail - Fix / Bohannons - The River Above / Wess Floyd - Hot Headed Rebels / Downtown Struts - Postcards / Todd Snider - Incarcarated / Campaign - Old Haunts / The Replacements - Left of the Dial / Chuck Ragan & Austin Lucas - Hold My Bed

DPDC Friday Playlist - 10/5

Friday Playlist - 9/28

Tracklist:
Gaslight Anthem - 1930 / Jawbreaker - Do You Still Hate Me? / Jr. Juggernaut - Wailing West / Heartless Bastards - Parted Ways / Banner Pilot - Western Terminal / The Menzingers - I Can't Seem to Tell / The Living Daylights - Wasted on the Rain / Glossary - At Midnight / A Giant Dog - Cowboy / Okkervil River - Black / Kid Dynamite - Bookworm / Jawbox - U-Trau / J. Tillman - Steel on Steel / The Wrens - Everyone Choose Sides / Laura Stevenson & The Cans - The Pretty One

DPDC Friday Playlist - 9/28

Bandcamp Roundup 9/25

In the past year or two, I've stumbled across plenty of great bands, either directly through, or via reference to their bandcamp pages, and alot of times I haven't had an occasion to feature them on a Friday Playlist because of my heavy reliance on Spotify.  Accordingly I thought I'd start profiling a few of these bands/albums every so often. If I had the luxury of more time or was more dedicated I'd do a write up for each, but this approach will have to do for now.

From my perspective (which is hopefully not misinformed) Bandcamp is a really nice platform for both artists to promote and sell their stuff (at prices they set), while owing a relatively small cut to the site, and fans to discover new music and buy it from bands they're already aware of.

Some of these albums are recent releases, some are older, just click through the tracks to hear them all.

Adam Hill - Discount Spirits
RIYL: Twangy Paul Westerberg, Exile or Let It Bleed Era Stones, Marah


Brandon Butler (ex Boy's Life, Canyon) - Helo 
RIYL: Tom Petty, Have Gun Will Travel, Limbeck


White Lung - Sorry
RIYL: Riot Grrl Stuff, Cloud Nothings, Dum Dum Girls, 80's hardcore


Typefighter - Fall Winter Fall
RIYL: Fake Problems, Tiny Engines Bands


Fistful of Beard - S/T
RIYL: Tim Barry, Cory Branan