Wednesday MidDay Medley
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Wednesday, December 7, 2011:

The 111 Best Recordings of 2011
(Part 1 of 4)

1. (111.) Raleigh Moncrief – “Lament for Morning”
from: Watered Lawn / Anticon Records / October 25, 2011
[Debut full length recording from Sacramento based, Raleigh Moncrief, who has collaborated with Dirty Projectors for their Bitte Orca recording that is also on our list of 111 Best Recordings of 2011.]

2. (110.) Soley – “Blue Leaves”
from: We Sink / Morr Music / October 3, 2011
[From Iceland comes Soley, an introverted singer-songwriter who was recently featured in “Backyard” a documentary about the influential Iceland music scene.]

3. (109.) Veronica Falls – “Veronica Falls”
from: Veronica Falls / Slumberland Records / Sept. 20, 2011
[self-titled debut record from a UK band that daringly recruited a bass player that didn’t know how to play until joining the group. Their first live performance was opening for Pains Of Being Pure At Heart.]

10:15

4. (108.) Bootsy Collins –“FreeDumb” w/ Dr. Cornel West
from: Tha Funk Capitol of The World / Mascot / April 26, 2011
[23rd studio album by funk musician Bootsy Collins, features an incredible line up of Bootsy’s friends including: Chuck D, Snoop Dogg and Bootsy’s Parliament and P-Funk band-mates: George Clinton & Bernie Worrell.]

5. (107.) The Go Team – “T.O.R.N.A.D.O.”
from: Rolling Blackouts / Memphis Industries / 2011
[3rd studio album from Brighton, England-based band that combine indie rock & garage rock w/ a mixture of blaxploitation & Bollywood soundtracks, double dutch chants, old school hip hop and distorted guitars. Their songs mix of live instruments and samples from.]

6. (106.) The Middle East – “Jesus Came To My Birthday Party”
from: I Want That You Are Always Happy / Spunk Records / April 2011
[Debut studio album by Australian folk band The Middle East, released in Australia and New Zealand. Based in Townsville in Queensland, Australia. Formed in 2005, the group played locally and completed several East Coast tours of mainly Christian festivals throughout Australia. They played their last show on July 31, 2011.]

7. (105.) Telekinesis – “Car Crash”
from: 12 Desperate Straight Lines / Merge / Feb. 15, 2011
[Telekinesis is Michael Benjamin Lerner, an indie rocker based out of Seattle. This is his 2nd album on Merge.]

10:30 – Underwriting

10:31

8. (104.) Peter, Bjorn & John – “Breaker Breaker”
from: Gimme Some / Star Time / March 29, 2011
[Our “Best of…” lists always seem to include representatives from Sweden. Gothenburg is a music town that rivals Montreal, Brooklyn, Omaha, and Nashville. Lykke Li appears on our list as we continue the count down. Peter Morén from Dalarna in the North of Sweden and Björn Yttling from Västerbotten – even further to the North – had been playing music together for 8 years when they in 1999 met John – from Norrbotten – which is yet even further to the North! Peter, Bjorn & John are back in our playlists this year with their sixth album.]

9. (103.) The Decemberists – “Down By The Water”
from: The King Is Dead / Capitol / Jan. 18, 2011
[Recorded during the spring of 2010 in the Portland area. The album title has been speculated to pay homage to The Smiths The Queen Is Dead, due to front man, Colin Meloy’s long-touted influence from the band. Meloy has cited that a primary musical influence for much of The King Is Dead is R.E.M.,[21] and three songs, feature R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck including “Down By The water.” The band played Uptown Theatre Monday, February 7.]

10. (102.) Marketa Irglova – “Go Back”
from: Anar / Anti- Records / October 7, 2011
[Solo debut from one-half of the Irish duo The Swell Season and co-star of the motion picture Once. Now at 23, she decided to branch out on her own after relocating to NYC and while The Swell Season were on hiatus.]

11. (101.) Poly Styrene – “Kitsch”
from: Generation Indigo / Future Noise Music / April 26, 2011
[On the verge of the release of her third solo release, singer Poly Styrene, former singer with the X-Ray Spex, died at the age of 53, after suffering from cancer. In February, in an interview published in The Sunday Times magazine, she revealed that she had been treated for breast cancer, and that it had spread to her spine and lungs. She died on April 25. She was one of the first female punk icons. She was very influential, with an unorthodox style. Poly Styrene formed her band the X-Ray Spex after watching the Sex Pistols perform on Hastings Pier on her 18th birthday. The band released just one album, “Germ Free Adolescents,” in 1978, before splitting up. The singer went on to record a solo album, Translucence, in 1980, before retreating from the music industry to join the Hare Krishnas. Singer Billy Bragg told a radio station that, “It’s always hard for women in rock music but it was particularly hard in the 70s,” he said. “I think she cut right through that. The work that she did and the things that she produced always stayed true to that original spirit of punk.”]

10:45

12. (100.) Jen Lawless – “All Goes Down”
from: Running Hot / Saunders Street Records / April 8, 2011
[By day, the 5′ 3″ Kansas City Native, Jen Lawless, drives an ambulance for the KC Fire Department and is responding to emergencies and racing between hospitals. Her occupation is the inspiration for many of the original songs on her Saunders Street Records release. Jen appeared on our May 11th WMM.]

13. (99.) Sterling Witt – “Perfect Girl”
from: Sounds of The Future (EP) / Bright Orange Records / 2011
[Born and raised in the rural countryside of Cass County he went to school in Harrisonville. At 15, he picked up the bass guitar, and taught myself how to play a right-handed instrument upside-down, left handed. Sterling Witt joined us LIVE on April 13 on WMM for the 90.1 FM Band Auction and again on August 31st.]

14. (98.) William Saunders – “Undone”
from: Tales of Weathered Plains / Saunders Street Records / 2011
[Born in L.A. and raised in KC and Raymore, Missouri, he spent eight years in the U.S. Army and served in the first gulf war. In Riyadh, Saudi Arabia he first started singing and writing. After the military, he started his business career. In the early 90’s he formed a band called “The Decadent.” After 16 years in the corporate world he discovered that he had written nearly seven hundred songs. In 2010, he left the corporate life to created Saunders Street Records and pursue a career in music, and the development of other musical artists. William Saunders played LIVE on our March 23 WMM ]

15. (97.) Jason Vivone – “Lemme Come Up For Air”
from: My Roaring Twenties / Independent / 2011
[Jason Vivone is the former Kansas City Blues Society’s International Blues Challenge solo winner. His band the Billy Bats were crowned KINGS OF THE ROOTS at the showdown at the Blue Note in Columbia, Missouri. In an annual event held by the Missouri Lottery and the Roots and BBQ fest, the Billy Bats beat out three other bands with their soulful, energetic live show. In January, Jason Vivone’s new solo CD “MY ROARING TWENTIES” was released to acclaim and terrific on-line sales. In March the new line up of the Billy Bats opened for Fishbone and also performed at the SXSW Festival in Austin. Jason Vivone performed LIVE on our Nov. 2 show.]

11:00

16. (96.) They Might Be Giants – “Judy Is Your Vietnam”
from: Join Us / Idlewild Recordings / July 19, 2011
[15th studio album and the first non-children’s album from the band since “The Else” in 2007. They Might Be Giants played Beaumont Club on Oct. 14.]

17. (95.) Brian Eno – “Glitch”
from: Drums Between The Bells / Opal – Warp Records / July 5, 2011
[40 years in music as a glam rocker, Ambient pioneer, producer, multimedia artist, technological translator, world beat drum-beater, and self-described non-musician. In the early years of Roxy Music, he set up a sound table off stage and turn knobs to create textures and echos. ]

18. (94.) Yuck – “Get Away”
from: Yuck / Fat Possum Records / Feb. 15, 2011
[Indie rock from London, England. Critics have compared their self-titled debut album to Dinosaur Jr. and Sonic Youth.]

19. (93.) Jenny Carr – “tease”
from: Maybe Definitely Really For Sure / Independent / Dec, 2010
[Missouri native, Jenny Carr has fronted the KC band the Waiting List and played bass for indie-rock bands: Anvil Chorus and Lights & Siren. She lists her influences as: The Beatles, The Kinks, Joni Mitchell, Elliott Smith and The Cranberries.]

11:15

20. (92.) St. Vincent – “Cruel”
from: Strange Mercy / 4AD / September 13 , 2011
[Manhattan based Annie Clark’s 11-song follow up to her critically acclaimed release “Actor” from 2009. Strange Mercy was recorded in Dallas, TX. St. Vincent played Lawrence, KS on October 7.]

21. (91.) Robert Ellis – “Comin’ Home”
from: Photographs / New West / July 5, 2011
[The New York Times writes that Robert Ellis is “Equally inspired by Jackson Browne and George Jones.” Based in Houston, Texas, the 22-year old, singer songwriter was first brought our attention by our Artist Joey Grimm, KCAI graduate from 2010, (now doing graduate work in Delaware) who played him on WMM back on August 10. Joey had just seen him live in Texas.]

22. (90.) Tom Russell – “Furious Love (For Liz)”
from: Mesabi / Shout! Factory Records / September 5, 2011
[Identified with the Texas Country music tradition, his music also includes elements of folk, Tex-Mex, and cowboy music of the American West. Mesabi includes songs about Bob Dylan, James Dean, Elizabeth Taylor, Cliff “Ukulele Ike” Edwards, Jimmy Driscoll and Sterling Hayden. Furious Love (For Liz)” was the last song written for Mesabi. Following the recent death of Elizabeth Taylor, Russell says, “I married a Swiss lady and we have a place in Switzerland in the Alps, and Liz Taylor had a chalet right down the street. Then I found out she lived for a short while in a penthouse in El Paso, with her first husband, Nicky Hilton. That overlooks Juarez, Mexico, and I thought, I’d write a waltz about Liz looking out on Juarez.” Tom Russell played Knuckleheads on October 6, 2011.]

11:27 – Underwriting

11:28

23. (89.) Stephin Merritt – “The Sun and the Sea and the Sky”
from: Obscurities / Merge Records / August 30, 2011
[In 1999, The Magnetic Fields’ three-CD collection 69 Love Songs established Stephin Merritt as one of this generation’s most talented songwriters. The LA Times called Merritt, “one of indie-rock’s most acclaimed figures.” “The Sun and the Sea and the Sky,” could be considered the 70th love song. Stephin Merritt writes that “this song didn’t go on 69 Love Songs because it wasn’t actually about romantic love. Now it sounds like a Germanic hymn to nature, as directed by Leni Riefenstahl.” This previously unreleased track is part of Stephin Merritt’s latest release, Obscurities, in his return to Merge Records, a collection of Merritt’s hard-to-find recordings dating back to his time on Merge (1994 1999) and prior, as well as 5 previously unreleased tracks. Pitchfork reports The Magnetic Fields will be releasing a new album on Merge in early 2012.]

24. (88.) Raphael Saadiq – “Stone Rollin’”
from: Stone Rollin’ / Sony / May 10, 2011
[born Charles Ray Wiggins in Oakland, California on May 14, 1966, Saadiq has been representing “old school” R&B since his early days as a member of the group Tony! Toni! Toné! He’s produced songs for TLC, Joss Stone, D’Angelo, Mary J. Blige, and John Legend. For his 4th studio album he pushed beyond the “classic soul revival” with more rock-inspiring funk, Chess Records-blues, and the more expansive orchestral sound of post-Detroit Motown and 1970s Philadelphia sound.]

25. (87.) Cadillac Fambe’ – “Devil’s Branch”
from: Eli’s Porch / Independent / July 29, 2011
[KC based band dedicated to pushing the envelope and blending various styles to create a new class of blues. The band will be featured at Murder Ballad Ball of 2011, a Benefit for the Midwest Music Foundation, Fri, Dec 9, 6 to 2:00 AM, at The Riot Room, 4048 Broadway, KCMO also appearing: American Catastrophe, Rural Grit All Stars, Tommy Donoho, Bob & Diana Suckiel, Sons of Great Dane, Cody Wyoming, Tony Ladesich, The Delighted, and others.]

26. (86.) Mountain Man – “Animal Tracks”
from: Live At The Wiltern / Partisan Records / July 5, 2011
[Molly Erin Sarle, Alexandra Sauser-Monnig and Amelia Randall Meath met at Bennington College, in the small town of Bennington, Vermont. This fall the trio toured with Feist.]

11:45

27. (85.) Neon Indian – “Polish Girl”
from: Era Extrana / Mom + Pop / September 13, 2011
[Recorded in Helsinki, Finland during the winter of 2010, Era Extraña translates: “Strange Era.” Neon Indian is an indie electronic band from Denton, Texas from Mexican-born composer by Alan Palomo who was born in Monterrey, Mexico in 1988 and moved to San Antonio, Texas at the age of 5, relocating to Denton, Texas for college. Neon Indian played The Record Bar on October 11 tour with Com Truise and Purity Ring.]

28. (84.) Com Truise – “Futureworld”
from: Galactic Melt / Ghostly / July 2011
[Com Truise, is New Jersey based designer and musician named Seth Haley, who said he envisioned this record as a “sort of film score…from the mind,” chronicling the life and death of Com Truise, the world’s first robotic astronaut, from his creation and life on Earth to his subsequent mission to a newly discovered galaxy called “Wave 1.”]

29. (83.) Prefuse 72 – “The Only Recycled Intro”
from: The Only She Chapters / Warp Records / April 25, 2011
[Guillermo Scott Herren was born in Miami, Florida and grew up in Atlanta, Georgia. His father is Catalan and his mother is Irish and Cuban. At an early age his parents encouraged him to play piano and other instruments; his mother “forced” Herren to play a wide variety of instruments, even going so far as to teach him the Suzuki Method in order to “keep him out of trouble”. Growing up, Herren’s musical tastes branched out and he became interested in hip-hop, punk rock, and electronic music]

30. (82.) Molly Picture Club – “Satellites”
from: four on the floor [EP] / Independent / late 2010
[Kansas City Based band featuring: Aniko Adany- vocals, synths, keys, omnichord, Matthew Hayden- drums, drum sequencing, and Michael Tipton- vocals, guitar, bass.]

31. Owen/Cox Dance Group & The People’s Liberation Big Band – “Spanish Dance”
from: The Nutcracker & The Mouse King / TZIGANE / December 2011
[Owen/Cox Dance Group Presents: The Nutcracker and the Mouse King featuring: Fifteen musicians of the People’s Liberation Big Band, horn sculptor Mark Southerland, artist Peregrine Honig, and students from the Paseo Academy of the Performing Arts as well as the award-winning choreography of Jennifer Owen. Performances: Friday & Saturday, December 9 & 10 at 8:00 PM, Sunday, December 11, at 2:00 PM. Friday & Saturday December 16 & 17, at 8:00 PM, Sunday, December 18, at 2:00 PM at The City Stage in Union Station, 30 West Pershing Rd Kansas City, MO. Tickets: $20 per person, $15 for students, seniors, and groups of 15 or more, $10 for children, ages 12 and under. Tickets & Information: http://www.unionstation.org/Nutcracker%5D

26. Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now”
from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]

Sources for notes: artist’s websites, wikipedia.org

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Wednesday, December 14 we continue with part-2, of our 4-week special: The 111 Best Recordings of 2011

Show # 398