Today we start off with The Mermen whose song titles are generally some of the best ever. Jim Thomas’ guitar playing is pretty awesome as well. We discovered them on the trip that was the subject of last week’s Old Photo Friday because the guy we stayed with in Albuquerque had hosted them just a few days earlier. He talked them up so big I had to buy A Glorious Lethal Euphoria, which stayed in my CD player for quite a while.
I once saw their sound described as Sonic Youth meets Hendrix in a psychedelic surf band. We finally caught them at the long gone Electric Lounge in Austin where I bought the CD that gives us the first track, which at twelve minutes is the most shreddin’ surf jam I’ve ever heard. It even segues into “Paint It Black” for a few incredible minutes.
Here’s the ten…
- “The Whales Are Coming and Boy Are They Pissed” – The Mermen – Live at the Haunted House
- “Here” – Pavement – Slanted & Enchanted
- “Missing” – Everything But The Girl – Amplified Heart
- “Cum On Feel the Noize” – Bran Van 3000 – Glee
- “Relative Ways” – …And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead – Source Tags & Codes
- “Babylon” – David Gray – White Ladder
- “Plateau” – Nirvana – MTV Unplugged in New York
- “The Boy in the Bubble” – Paul Simon – Graceland
- “Night Train” – Bruce Cockburn – Anything Anytime Anywhere – Singles 1979-2001
- “Leif Erikson” – Interpol – Turn on the Bright Lights
The rest of the set is pretty pop. Bran Van’s Quiet Riot cover is wonderfully subversive and still every bit the party song it was meant to be. “Boy in the Bubble” reminds me how great Graceland is and why it’s still in my top albums of the ’80s list.
James Brush is a teacher and writer who lives in Austin, TX. He tries to get outside as much as possible.
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