This Recording

In Which Rufus Wainwright Stares Into the Mirror With You

alexcarnevale — Sat, 17 May 2008 04:39:23 +0000

the iTunes playlist: Rufus Wainwright

The return of the iTunes playlist features the balladeer from a good family, Rufus Wainwright. We used to want to be one of the Wainwrights before we wanted to be bros with the guys in Hot Chip. His debut and Poses are both phenomenal albums. Rufus is the gay Patti Smith. Strike that, Rufus is the gay _____. He is a Mad Lib for us all to enjoy. He would have been so huge twenty or thirty years ago. He is still huge, and he is always falling in love. You can now fall in love as well, this time with his iTunes playlist. - A.C.

Rufus & his dad Loudon Wainwright III

“My Man’s Gone Now” - Nina Simone (mp3)

This is a Gershwin song from Porgy & Bess. The reason I chose this piece is because I really think it is one of the most incredible piano performances ever recorded. It was instrumental in inspiring me to write songs for the piano and sing - you know, accompany myself, and be as dramatic as possible.

“Sans Souci” - Peggy Lee (mp3)

I just think it’s funny because I recently wrote a song called “Sanssouci” which is on my album. My song is about the palace in Potsdam, which is near Berlin, and I think hers is more about being at some crazy party.

rufe and winona ryder

“Talk to Me of Mendocino” - Kate & Anna McGarrigle (mp3)

This one’s by my mom. It’s written about a trip she took once to a town in Northern California. It’s really one of her signature works and every time I hear it, I cry and think of her and how much I love her.

“B.M.F.A.” - Martha Wainwright (mp3)

There’s some swear words in the title. This is by Martha Wainwright, my great sister, and it’s a song that she released as a single which was very, very, very brave of her. Martha is one of the great singers of our age, and also has her own proper career, which thank God happened, otherwise we would have been killing each other.

Martha is going on tour!

“Hammond Song” - The Roches (mp3)

I’ve always loved them. It’s my dad’s second wife, but I’m a big Roches fan and I think their sound is really amazing and this song is one of their greatest.

“La Boheme, Act I, Che geilda manina” - Jussi Bjorling

This is from the opera La Boheme. It’s the big tenor aria and this version is by Jussi Bjorling who is probably one of greatest tenors who ever lived. This song was always played at the house when I was a child and my mother would actually sing it herself on the piano after many drinks. It’s one of the greatest musical pieces ever written.

rufus and julia…jk that’s gina gershon

“Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow” - Carole King (mp3)

Carole King wrote it…the version I love is by Roberta Flack. This is something I would always play when I was extremely lonely and in need of good old fashioned romance as opposed to some sort of casual fling. This song represents wanting more out of a relationship and needing actual human contact for the sake of humanity as opposed to, you know, testosterone, so yeah…it’s about love.

“Trains and Boats and Planes” - Dionne Warwick

This song is by Burt Bacharach and sung by Dionne Warwick. One of the greatest experiences of my life was getting to play with Burt Bacharach. I got to sing with him and do a few shows with him, and, needless to say, it was the apex of this portion of my career. I felt like it was my Dusty Springfield moment and this song, ‘Trains and Boats and Planes’ is just one of his many classics.

more great rufe pics here

“Pirate Jenny” - Lotte Lenya (mp3)

I don’t know if this is the name of it, but I call it, ‘Jenny the Pirate.’ Jenny, the character…it’s sung by Lotte Lenya and it’s Jenny’s main song from Threepenny Opera by Kurt Weil. I just love it so much because when I was a teenager I used to pretend to be Jenny (ha ha) and get naked in my dorm room and put pearls on, stare at myself in the mirror, and lip sync to this.

Rufus’ official site is here.

He’s writing an opera!

The best Rufus cover:

PREVIOUSLY ON THIS RECORDING

We discussed the ending to a book.

Rachael and Gideon’s wedding.

PTA and Fiona.

In Which These Are Some Blogs That Make Our Heart Skip A Beat

Molly Lambert — Fri, 16 May 2008 20:20:19 +0000

I Wolfed My Teamster Sub For You!

by Molly Lambert

Crunk + Disorderly

Bright Stupid Confetti

Moon Milk With A Spoon

Douglas Wolk’s LACUNAE

Classic Drug References

Laura Hudson’s Myriad Issues

Bliss Blog

Teenage Teardrops

SONGS TO SURF THE NET TO:

“Abominable Snow” - Islands (mp3)

“Kissing the Beehive” - Wolf Parade (mp3)

“Eraser” - No Age (mp3)

“Behave!” - Frightened Rabbit (mp3)

“Things I Did When I Was Dead” - No Age (mp3)

PREVIOUSLY ON THIS RECORDING:

The iTunes Playlist Series

Death Cab For Cutie’s Ben Gibbard

Cutie From Canada Ellen Page

Bobby Digital AKA The Rza

College Dropout Kanye West

Little Old Man Michael Cera

Molly Lambert is the managing editor of This Recording

In Which Ben Lambert Is My Brother And It Is His Birthday

Molly Lambert — Thu, 15 May 2008 17:00:00 +0000

Benjamin William Harpo Cronin Lambert

by Molly Lambert

My brother is one year and eight months younger than me. When we were little, everyone thought we were twins. I didn’t mind. Now people think he is older, because he’s way taller than me. I still don’t mind. We are redheads with bedhead whose parents are Deadheads. I usually compare us to Lindsay and Sam Weir. He doesn’t like that because he was never as dorky or small as Sam (but I sure was!) As siblings, we’re probably most like Pete & Pete, if older Pete’s genes and Ellen Hickle’s were spliced together.

Ben’s great and hilarious and keeps me in check. He knows everything about music that I don’t know. He remembers our entire childhood, down to the last detail. And he is very, very, very, wise. If I could, I would nominate him to be the Dalai Lama. Instead I will nominate him to be the next Thomas Jefferson. Much like great ginger U.S. statesman Jefferson, Ben is a wicked smart, polymathic, fully enlightened redhead. In honor of his 23rd b-day, here are 23 reasons my brother is awesome.

1. He fights the powers that be.

2. He is a Kilroy for delicious pie.

3. He is a sweet DJ. Subscribe to his podcast please.

4. You might think talented siblings David and Amy Sedaris or Jake and Maggie Gyllenhaal have the coolest brother/sister team award on lock, but that’s because maybe you haven’t met us yet. When our powers combine, Ben and I become an unstoppable team called the Gyngerhaals.

5. His Lambo’s West Coast Ish Mix is sloppy and delicious like a plate of BBQ ribs and fresh like some cold lemonade.

6. He’s very polite.

7. Except when he’s swinging from chandeliers.

8. He loves to draw a gold toothed little quintapus.

9. He taught me how to do the Kit-Cat Clock dance.

10. He’s weirder than I am even (maybe).

11. This is his baby picture.

12. He does not fear the jellyfish, he respects them.

13. He is an outsider artiste extraordinaire.

14. He’s a Redhead Without A Cause. Well, actually I guess the cause is a recessive variant of the Mc1r gene.

15. He’s not Michael Rapaport.

16. He never smiles in pictures (expect this one).

17. He is red like a lobster.

18. He hung out with Devin the Dude!!!

19. He is not Andy Samberg as Prince Harry.

20. He is red like a ketchup.

21. He is very smart and doesn’t need glasses.

22. He is icy cool like a penguin.

23. He’s a fantastic brother and friend. Happy birthday dude!

SONGS FOR MY LITTLE BRO’S B-DAY

“Lambo’s West Coast Ish Mix” - Ben Lambo Lambert

“Little Brother (Electric)” - Grizzly Bear

“Life Of The Party” - Little Brother

“Spazz” - N.E.R.D.

PREVIOUSLY ON THIS RECORDING:

Nom Nom Nom It Are My Birthday

Alex Celebrated Our Joint Birthday

And We Got Matching Virgo Tattoos

THIS RECORDING IS A FAMILY AFFAIR

In Which Nobody Is Allowed In the Practice Room Especially A Woman

alexcarnevale — Thu, 15 May 2008 01:55:31 +0000

Somewhere Else

What with Chris Farley and the NBA playoffs, this is totally an oral history party up in this betch. The following excerpt comes from Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk and concerns legendary TR photosetress Nico and her short-lived relationship with the grotesque lead singer of The Stooges, Iggy Pop.

Nico

Ron Asheton, member of the Stooges: Danny took us to meet Andy Warhol at the Factory after the record came out. The Factory was decorated in tinfoil and kind of grungy. We were midwestern kids and it was too weird for us - all these New York speed freaks and homosexuals. I didn’t even talk to Warhol. Scott, Dave, and I were so freaked that we just sat together on the couch. We wound up thinking it was too creepy and left after a half hour.

The next night or so, we went to Steve Paul’s club, the Scene, to see Terry Reid play. Jimi Hendrix showed up and jammed with him. After the show, Iggy and I had a beer with Hendrix. Iggy was walking around with Nico, and I was just sitting there snickering, because she was leading him around like he was her kid. She was so tall and he’s so short - they were holding hands, real lovey-dovey. She wouldn’t let him out of her sight.

Danny Fields, Elektra Records: You kind of expected that Iggy would be someone Nico would fall in love with. He was everything she would like in a guy: wounded, brilliant, fragile but made of steel, insane, demented.

So it was no surprise. Nico fell in love with everyone who was extremely brilliant, insane, or a junkie. I don’t want to seem cyncical, and if I knew it was going to make such history I would have had a tape recorder, but at the time it was, “Ho hum, Nico’s in love with another poet.”

Iggy Pop: I was making love to Nico a lot. All day pretty much. Nico was really something special. I dug her a lot. I couldn’t fall in love with anybody, but I was really thrilled and excited to be around her. She was older and she was from somewhere else. I really liked that - her accent was from somewhere else, everything about her was from somewhere else.

nico upskirt

Iggy Pop: Also, she was extremely strong. It was like hanging out with a guy except she had girl’s parts; that was the only difference, otherwise it was like hanging out with a tough-minded, egotistical, artiste kinda guy.

She’d be very opinionated about my work, and this, that, and the other thing - then all of a sudden that veneer would fall off and she would show tremendous vulnerability. And then I would see her: Here’s someone over thirty, not a model anymore, not a commercial entity of any kind in the big business called America, and what the fuck is she gonna do?

Nico had a great sadness about her. You know, she had all the accoutrements of a really groovy international gal - the right boots, the right sheepskin coat, the right hair, and she knew people on the right level, and yet she was fucked-up - she had a twist to her. She was a great, great artist. It was just a real kick to be around her.

Iggy Pop: I’m absolutely convinced that some day, when people have ears to hear her, in the same way that people have eyes to see a van Gogh now, that people are just gonna go, “WHOAAAA!”

Then she came with me to Ann Arbor and lived in the band house with me.

Ron Asheton: When Iggy said, “Nico’s coming,” it was like, “Hey well cool, we don’t care.” When Nico moved into the Fun House, we hardly saw her, because Iggy kept her up in the attic. The only time we saw her was when we practiced, and we resented her being there because we had a big rule - nobody allowed in the practice room, especially a woman.

iggy and JT

Ron Asheton: But then she’d make these great curry dishes and just leave them on the table with really expensive wines. That’s what got us all back into drinking, the great wines Nico turned us on to.

Iggy Pop: The Stooges didn’t want any girls in the house, especially one who had a very deep voice. They would imitate how she talked. Nico would try to cook for us, but she would cook a pot of brown rice and pour half a container of Tabasco sauce in it. She had an ear infection and she felt the Tabasco would clear her ear out.

iggy

And Nico liked to drink. She got me into that, too, and while she was living with us my shows started getting really, really bad. Because Nico was a bad seed. You know, she was not like the girl next door.

Ron Asheton: Nico got some filmmaker to come to Michigan and make some sixteen-millimeter movie with Iggy. We all went out to this farm, and Nico got John Adams to be in it, too, because he looked like a sphinx: big, long, tight, curly red hair. It was the dead of winter and we were sitting looking out this picture window, laughing, while they put these mannequin arms all over the field - John with no shirt on, and Iggy with no shirt on, doing nothing. Boy, it was real artsy.

nico

Iggy Pop: We ran around and around this potato field and mimed with plastic limbs. I never made much sense of it. It was jive. But I needed dinner that day. What had happened was that Francois de Menil of Texas money wanted to do a film with Nico and she said, “If you wanna do a film, you gotta come out to Michigan and put Jimmy in it.” So he said, “Well, okay.”

Danny Fields: Nico would call me all the time from Ann Arbor, saying, “I don’t know eeeff he loves meee enymore, he’s ignoring meee, oooh, he’s so meeean to meee!”

I’d say, “Well, I guess you picked kind of a hard guy to have an affair with.” You know, sorry, but what else is new?

iggy

Iggy Pop: Nico used to say to me, “Zhimmy, oh Zhimmy, you must be totally poisoned to do what you do. You are only mostly poisoned, you must be totally poisoned.”

She meant I had too much humanity. Then she’d feed me red wines with French names I never heard of. That’s how I learned all that bullshit; that’s how I learned how to modulate my voice…wear light blue suits and speak to record company executives.

Ron Asheton: Nico stayed a long time, about three months. Iggy never said if he was in love with her or not. But I remember after she left, Iggy came downstairs looking for some advice. He came up to me and said, “Well, I, I think something’s wrong, maybe you can tell me what this is?” So he whips out his cock, squeezes it, and green goo comes out. I said, “Buddy, you got the clap.” Nico gave Iggy his first dose of the clap.

You can buy Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk here.

ENJOY THE STOOGES’ SELF-TITLED DEBUT

“1969″ - The Stooges (mp3)

“I Wanna Be Your Dog” - The Stooges (mp3)

“We Will Fall” - The Stooges (mp3)

“No Fun” - The Stooges (mp3)

“Real Cool Time” - The Stooges (mp3)

“Ann” - The Stooges (mp3)

“Not Right” - The Stooges (mp3)

“Little Doll” - The Stooges (mp3)

PREVIOUSLY ON THIS RECORDING

Why would we go back to the park?

There is no greater grief.

The battle of the sexy.

nico

In Which The NBA Playoffs Are Here Meow

alexcarnevale — Wed, 14 May 2008 14:39:17 +0000

The NBA Playoffs: Where Oral History Happens

by Alex Carnevale

OK, so you guys, the NBA playoffs. The NBA ranks as the biggest dysfunctional family out there. It has guns, and bling, and sex outside of marriages. And it has older white men commenting on it. It is basically like The Real World meets Gladiator with a dash of Marv Albert’s freaky deaky. And it has victims, too. After a hard foul by Celtics forward Paul Pierce, Lebron had to be held back while yelling at his mom, “Sit your ass down.” Incredible.

We sat down with the biggest stars of the National Basketball Association to discuss this season’s playoffs, TR-style.

LEBRON JAMES, Cavaliers forward: I don’t know what was up with me you guys. I told my mom, “Sit your ass down” during an athletic competition. It seemed like such the right move at the time. Mom hasn’t stopped taking my money, but she now bunks with DeShawn Stevenson. I can’t believe I said that to my mom.

GLORIA JAMES, Bron’s mom: He had no right to talk to me that way. I got Kevin Garnett’s number, how do you like them apples?

Bron telling his mom to “Sit Your Ass Down”:

LEBRON JAMES: Did you know I am worth more than the entire nation of Luxembourg? I ate grilled chimpanzee the other day. It was a little tough but good. Afterwards, my entourage came up to congratulate me. I feel I have not known true satisfaction until now.

DESHAWN STEVENSON, Wizards guard: You guys. In one summer I played against the best player in humanity, had Jay-Z write a new track just to diss me, and got with with FORTY hos. Long live Summer 2008.

“Blow the Whistle” - Jay-Z (mp3)

gilbert sleeping like an angel

GILBERT ARENAS, Wizards guard: It is with great regret that I shut down my blog. “One Day You’re Here, The Next Day You’re Gone.” - Pimp C. RIP Pimp C. RIP My Blog. RIP Our Playoff Hopes 2008. Long live my contract extension.

put an R on us after the game Kobe!!!

KOBE BRYANT, Lakers forward: When I came to Denver, where it all went down for me with that white ho (we call them Mileys now), I felt a twinge in my back. Things got better momentarily when I got my MVP and all the guys were like, are you going to get us Thank You Prezzies? And I was like, you guys gotta stop reading lolcats. The next day before the game, I had my assistant put a wrapped gift in each of their lockers.

PAU GASOL, Lakers forward: I took a cameraphone picture when I saw what was in mine.

When Kobe arrived for Game 2, everyone went up to thank him. I didn’t say anything. When he came over and asked how I liked my gift, I couldn’t hold back. I hugged the crap out of him.

CHAUNCEY BILLUPS, injured Pistons guard: Was I upset when I hurt my hamstring in Game 3? Sure. Was I glad to have the opportunity to break out the swankest “I’m-out-with-an-injury” jacket? Yes. Am I planning on sitting out Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals to debut my new kicks? Most probably.

Chauncey, we love that jacket so much we cannot even express it

“Mathletics (live)” - Foals (mp3)

“Cappo” - No Age (mp3)

“Camouflage” - Glorytellers (mp3)

STEVE LAVIN, NBA referee: Three things. One, Kobe called me a cracker. Two, where was my thank you gift, Kobe? I need weed. Three, Manu Ginobli is a fucking asshole.

BARON DAVIS, Warriors guard: MY TEAM JUST DOESN’T APPRECIATE ME! I AM THE FRANCHISE! I AM CUTTING OFF THE HEAD OF A CHRIS MULLIN DOLL! I AM RIDING MY HORSE WHICH I NAMED BARON JR! I AM MAKING ANDRIS BIEDRINS PREPARE ME CEREMONIAL CUPCAKES! I AM A BEAST IN THE LOW POST! BRING ME TO NEW YORK!

BARON THOSE SHOULDERPADS ARE OUT OF CONTROL BUDDY

KEVIN GARNETT, Celtics forward: My coach doesn’t know who to play at point guard, so he moves Sam Cassell from his regular role as a backup into starter’s minutes, forgetting that he can’t play that many minutes. Cassell goes on a 0 for 15 shooting slump. My coach benches perhaps our most valuable reserve besides James Posey in Leon Powe for no discernible reason, and continues playing Glen Davis even though Davis matches up poorly with Cleveland’s athletic front line. He won’t call enough plays for me in the post and I’m naturally unselfish so I don’t even play for most of the fourth quarter and then come in and try to take over. Surprise, it doesn’t work. We don’t run any plays for Ray Allen off screens, and we’re playing veteran P.J. Brown big minutes even though he sat out most of the season. Bill Simmons jinxes us by proclaiming us as great before we’ve even won anything. I’ve been outplayed by Zydrunas Ilgaskus in this series, and I’m seriously questioning whether or not Doc Rivers has an IQ above 100. My team nearly lost to an Atlanta team that struggled to make the playoffs, and with home court advantage against a team with Lebron and motley collection of three-point shooters, we can’t get our own shot or shoot the 3 consistently. I really wish I could be born again and drafted by the Spurs.

BILL SIMMONS: It’s all my fault.

Lebron’s mom & his girl, it’s much cooler to knock up a betch if ur lebron

MIKE D’ANTONI, new head coach of the New York Knicks: 4 years! 24 million! Steve Kerr can suck on my Italian balls, as can the next person who calls me Mike D’Antonio!

arrange yourselves in the form of a bunny rabbit! dance for me bitches!

MARV ALBERT,TNT announcer, after calling Lebron’s dunk at the end of Game Four by pronouncing, “Lebron James with no regard for human life!”: I practiced that call in the mirror before the game. You can’t see it on camera, but I’m holding onto my toupee as I say those fateful words, which enter themselves into sports history like so many of Lebron’s dunks. I think of the dunk and my call of it for days afterwards, while eating, sleeping, having sex, dancing, in TGIFridays, in line, at church. This was Lebron’s moment, and I took it from him. Booyakasha.

Alex Carnevale is the editor of This Recording. He lives on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.

reggie miller, we treasure every moment with you

PREVIOUSLY ON THIS RECORDING

Will on Gertrude Stein.

It was 9/11.

Our girl in Germany.

In Which I’m A Lonesome Schoolboy In Your Town

alexcarnevale — Tue, 13 May 2008 14:10:38 +0000

Cocksucker Blues

by Molly Lambert

“Definitely one of the best movies about rock and roll I’ve ever seen. It makes you think being a rock and roll star is one of the last things you’d ever want to do.” - Jim Jarmusch

The famously unreleased Rolling Stones rock documentary Cocksucker Blues records the developmental stage of rock-star life known as “The Heroin Years.” Two years after the tragedy of Gimme Shelter (no offense to the Maysles, Grey Gardens is clutch), the Glimmer Twins are at new depths of debauchery.

Robert Frank gave cameras to all the members of the band to record their own experiences as they toured the U.S. for the first time since the events at Altamont in support of Exile On Main Street, and then edited their footage together on his own.

“It’s a fucking good film, Robert, but if it shows in America we’ll never be allowed in the country again.” - Mick Jagger

It’s the definitive chronicle of the Bad End Of The Sixties, the era of Charlie Manson and The Zodiac Killer. Directed by famous photographer and documentarian Robert Frank, Cocksucker Blues is a long bad drug trip and the horrible comedown.

One fan complains to Frank that the state’s taken her child away just because she likes to drop acid. “So what?” she says “He was born on acid!”

Cameraman Danny Seymour starts out chronicling the drug abuse and ends up neck deep in it. Mick listens to a music box and masturbates. None of this is as fun or cool as it sounds.

director/photographer Robert Frank

This clip pretty much defines the concepts of Fame and Celebrity. It’s Truman Capote and Andy Warhol backstage at a Stones show in 1972. Despite their artistic clout and backstage passes they are still a couple of pale queers giggling in the corner of a party they will always be outsiders at.

And yet somehow, amidst all the groupies and junkies and handlers and hangers-on, you can’t help but think that hanging out talking trash with Truman and Andy would beat the hell out of shooting up smack with the Stones.

MORE COCKSUCKER CLIPS

Smacked Out Junkie Rock Stars

Even the fucking sound guy’s on heroin!

Keef and Bobby Keys toss a TV out of the hotel window.

Mick smokes a joint, eats some ice cream, loves Southern cuisine

classic Robert Frank photograph

I read someone (I think it was Paul McCartney, actually) give a good maxim about LSD that went: “Once you’ve got the message, hang up the phone.” Don’t drop any more acid, kids.

Two more long clips from Cocksucker Blues. Quick watch em before ABKCO takes em down!

A strikingly banal outtake from the Maysles’ Stones at Altamont documentary Gimme Shelter

The (filthy) eponymous song Cocksucker Blues, which The Stones gave to Decca in order to get out of their contract.

A 1973 interview with Keef where he is especially nasty

Mick and Keith in a joint interview

Beatles or Stones?

Shine A Light, a documentary about the family-friendly cleaned up dirty old men called The Rolling Stones, directed by fellow former cokehead Marty Scorsese.

Molly Lambert is the senior editor of This Recording

ACOUSTIC MOTHERFUCKERS IN EXILE

Downloadable bootleg of the complete album! Includes the aforementioned “Cocksucker Blues” and alternate versions of “Sister Morphine,” “”Dear Doctor,” “Wild Horses,” among other classic Stones jams.

Acoustic Motherfuckers - The Rolling Stones (complete album)

“Rocks Off” - The Rolling Stones

“Sweet Virginia” - The Rolling Stones

“Stop Breaking Down” - The Rolling Stones

XOXO, BLOGSIP GIRL

Flight Of The Conchords are so hot they’re making me sexist

Lindsay Lohan gives GF Samantha Ronson a monster hickey

Spike Jonze and Rivers Cuomo are both going bald

PREVIOUSLY ON THIS RECORDING

Where Can I Get My Cock Sucked

Where Can I Get My Ass Fucked

I Ain’t Got No Money, But I Know Where To Put It Every Time

This Recording’s Coat is Torn and Frayed

In Which Last Week’s Suck Is This Week’s Awesome

alexcarnevale — Mon, 12 May 2008 19:29:52 +0000

What Do You Do In San Francisco: Jenna Bush Tribute Edition

by Danish Aziz

This week’s awesomeness makes up for last week’s audio weakness and then some. Oh yeah, it’s supposed to get up to 93 degrees on Friday. Oh yeah, and it’s Bay to Breakers this weekend.

MUXTAPE

Tuesday, May 13

Kate Nash @ The Fillmore. The Streets meets Lily Allen.

Kate Nash - “Foundations” (mp3)

Cloud Cult @ Bottom of the Hill. Last week Minneapolis was rep’d by Tapes ‘n Tapes, this week it’s Cloud Cult. Salt of the earth!

Vetiver for FREE @ Amoeba Berkeley. Maybz that chick who helped ruin Star Wars will be there?

Wednesday, May 14

The Dodos for FREE @ Amoeba SF. BeST neW MUZIx!!!

Crowded House @ The Fillmore. “Trying to catch the deluge in a paper cut”!

Crowded House - “Don’t Dream It’s Over” (mp3)

Thursday, May 15

The Proclaimers @ Slim’s. Scottland’s U2.

The Proclaimers - “Over and Done With” (mp3)

The Bad Plus @ Palace of Fine Arts. When will there be piano trio covers of rap songs?The Bad Plus - “Iron Man” (Black Sabbath Cover) (mp3)

Radio 4 w/ Roxy Cottontail @ PopScene. How being a party promoter qualifies one for a rap career is beyond me, but Radio 4 have that hit!

Gordon Gano (of the Violent Femmes) @ Boom Boom Room. Not to be confused with Gordon Gekko.

Violent Femmes - “Gone Daddy Gone” (mp3)

Friday, May 16

Robyn @ Bimbo’s 365. The Swedish Uffie!

Kenny Loggins @ Marin Veterans’ Memorial Auditorium at Marin Center. Will the post-bros riot when dude plays “Highway to the Danger Zone”?

Kenny Loggins - “Highway To The Dangerzone” (mp3)

The Dirtbombs @ The Independent. Awesome live show; Jack White kind of jacked their sound in the Detroit days.

Murder By Death w/ Dios @ Bottom of the Hill. Dios should be headlining this.

Saturday, May 17

Mission Bazaar @ The Armory building - Local capitalism/art in the porn palace

Metro Area @ Vessel. Metro Area = Morgan Geist and Darshan Jesrani who were once contenders for coolest DJs in NYC. I probably don’t own the right striped shirt to go to a place like Vessel, but this would be an amazing set.

Metro Area - “Atmosphrique” (mp3)

Sister Sledge w/ Holy Ghost! @ Mezzanine. Disco party; old meet young, black meet white.

Holy Ghost - “Hold On” (mp3)

The Kills @ Slim’s. Post-punk.

Etta James @ Marin Veterans’ Memorial Auditorium at Marin Center. Marin Veterans’ Auditorium holding it down!

Etta James - “At Last” (mp3)

Sunday, May 18

Bay To Breakers featuring the Million Pirate March. B2B is the new Halloween; Halloween is the new New Year’s Eve; NYE is the new Kwanzaa.

El Perro Del Mar w/ Lykke Li @ Bimbo’s 365. Lykke Li made one of the best songs of ‘08 thus far. Ms. Li will be opening for fellow Swede El Perro Del Mar, so prepare for cute overload!

Lykke Li - “Little Bit” (mp3)

El Perro Del Mar - “God Knows” (mp3)

SF Oyster Fest featuring She and Him plus many more @ Great Meadow at Ft. Mason. There is an unfounded rumor (started by me right now) that Nat Port will be in attendance to see fellow try-too-hardster Zooey Deschanel. It is also rumored (again by me) that Christina Ricci will be performing Captain Beefheart covers with kazoo-only accompaniment.

Monday, May 19

Roll in to work kinda late

Clinic @ The Independent. Nobody else sounds like Clinic; “Distortions” is one of the top 100 songs of the 00’s.

Clinic - “Distortions” (mp3)

Danish Aziz is the senior contributor to This Recording. He would like to congratulate Jenna Bush on a terrific wedding.

PREVIOUSLY ON THIS RECORDING

Sick ass dunks and Brigitte Bardot.

Time to break the fast.

Get money, new money.

In Which We Count Down The Sexiest Women Of The Year

Molly Lambert — Mon, 12 May 2008 13:00:24 +0000

This Recording’s Sexiest Women Of 2008

by Dan Samiljan

We’re not even halfway through 2008, and FHM (Forgetting Hairy Marshall?) has already put out their Top 100 Sexiest Women of 2008 list. I respect (although disagree with) their assertiveness that no other sexy women will emerge this year. However, I find their list lacking in a few areas and I’d like to offer my own, more complete list.

Since Molly won’t let me put up all 100 girls (something about bandwidth – I’m afraid I don’t know much about computers), here’s a random sampling. Congrats to all the lucky ladies!

98. Amy Adams, actress: The first of many redheads on the list. I finally saw Enchanted! Got it on Netflix and watched it with my friends Racki and Joe. I tell people that “I actually liked it” and it was “surprisingly good.” Even gave it 4 stars (which means “I really liked it”) on Netflix and other people can see that. I’m a good guy. What are you doing this weekend?

84. Jenny Wade, actress: Jenny auditioned for a TV show on ABC I worked on that I won’t name (Cavemen). We flirted a little before her first audition, and then a little more before each of her callbacks. After she auditioned for the network and didn’t get the part, I knew I had to act fast or never see her again. So I asked her out on a date. Then she told me she was married. Then Cavemen was cancelled.

71. Rashida Jones & Jenna Fischer, actresses (tie): Too close to call. Kind of unfair to pair them together, I know. And now we’re in Season 4 and our Rashida intake is very limited (though, it was great), but that kind of makes me miss her more. I can’t deny the whole Jim/Pam thing they’re doing is pretty romantic. Y’know, I met Jenna Fischer one time. She was really sweet. She said, “Oh! You’re from Boston? BJ is from Boston! C’mere, BJ!” And then BJ Novak came over. “Dan is from Boston!” He gave me that smug smile and nodded. (You know exactly what I’m talking about.) Then it was kind of awkward for a few minutes and then they left. Thanks for ruining my game, BJ Novak.

62. Jenny Lewis, singer: Redhead #2. Y’know, I never got into Rilo Kiley or that solo album she put out. I saw her one time at the Feist/Spoon show and she looked really tired. I probably should’ve put Leslie Feist on here, come to think of it. She was really great that night.

58. Liz Lemon, fictional character: Not Tina Fey. Liz Lemon. I actually find Tina Fey pretty annoying. She’s way too into herself and plays it off all coy. She’s so into herself that she made a show about how awesome and coy she is. Which brings me to Liz Lemon, who is kind of awesome. And the whole show is about her cleavage! Have you noticed? It’s hard to miss. I mean, I know it’s supposed to be about the comedic mishaps of running a live TV show (read: a vehicle for Tracy Morgan and Alec Baldwin to be funny), but you can’t fool me. I’ve seen it. It’s about her cleavage.

50. Sarah Shahi, actress: Oh, Sarah Shahi. This might be a little awkward seeing how I may or may not work on a TV show on NBC that you star on that I won’t name (Life and I do – Season 2 coming this Fall!), but I don’t care. You’re amazing.

45. Jessica Lucas, Lizzy Caplan, Odette Yustman, and the Cloverfield monster, the Cloverfield girls (4-way tie!): Cloverfield was disappointing, huh? I wanted to like it. I really did. But there wasn’t much to like. I couldn’t get myself to care about any character and/or backstory they tried to fit in. And I know this complaint has been made a lot already, but that monster was just lame and its size was completely inconsistent throughout the movie. He (sorry, she) should’ve been fucking huge! The thing took off the Statue of Liberty’s head! I thought it was going to be at least triple the size that it was. Mighty cute girls, though. Five-way? Would we count the little fuckers that grew out of the monster and fucking killed everyone? Can we not?

37. Marcela Sapone, friend (more?): FHM puts obscure girls on their list, so I can too. This is a girl I knew in college. I had a crush on her forever. One night we drank some whiskey, put on Al Green and made out. Then my roommate walked in. And I haven’t seen her since. Marcela, not my roommate. Actually, that’s not entirely true. I saw her once months later at a party and she whispered to me that she “hadn’t forgotten.” I wonder if she’s forgotten Hairy Marshall. That’s not what I call my D, it’s a referential joke to the beginning. Forget it.

33. Jessica Rabbit, fictional character: The third redhead. I wish you were real! Actually, I take that back, considering new shit has come to light. What was it like working with Bob Zemeckis before he became a total fucking douchebag? Man, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, Romancing the Stone, and yes, all three Back To The Futures are so good. R.I.P. Robert Zemeckis 1984-1990.

28. Marie Antoinette, historical figure: She looked like Kirsten Dunst and listened to Gang of Four! An ideal woman. Coincidentally, Kirsten Dunst doesn’t listen to Gang of Four and therefore did not make the list.

26. M.I.A., badass: M.I.A. would kick my ass. I wouldn’t mind.

24. Katie Dippold, comedian/writer: Sure taste is relative, but in my opinion Katie Dippold is probably the smartest, cutest, and funniest girl at the Upright Citizen Brigade Theatre’s Harold Night (Mondays). Fall in love with her as she performs in the Harold group Powerwalkers and steals the show every fucking time.

19. The Statue of Liberty, solid rock: Lady Liberty herself! Nothing sexier than being an All-American girl! The French gave us this sexy lady in 1886 as a way of saying “Here, have this.” I have a guilty pleasure for girls who are taller (or shorter) than me. But can you imagine what I could do to the Statue of Liberty? Christ. That is, if the Cloverfield monster doesn’t get to her first.

10. Ariel, the Little Mermaid, mermaid: The 4th redhead! Wish I could be part of your world! Am I right?! No but seriously, I want to be an animated Disney character living underwater singing about shit. What, you don’t? My buddy Craig makes a good argument for Evil Ariel and I can’t disagree. I dunno why he doesn’t just call her Hot Ursula. But I can’t put two amphibious women on the same list! That’s just absurd. (Ed. Note: Hot Ursula/Evil Ariel’s name is Vanessa. - ML)

7. Paul Rudd, guy: Ok, not technically a girl, but I would still have sex with him, so he must be.

6. The Girl Driving Behind Me The Other Day, mystery woman: I was on my way to work, about to get on the 101. I checked my rear view and there you were! I almost got into an accident because I couldn’t take my eyes off of you. You caught me looking and you smiled. You were absolutely radiant in your gray or white or red car, I don’t remember. I was too busy looking at your eyes. They looked beautiful behind your sunglasses. And your hair! Your blonde or brown or red hair, I don’t remember. But I do remember being smitten at the time and thinking, “This is the type of moment you put on Craigslist’s Missed Connections.” But I never did. I should put up a Missed Missed Connection. I think it might be the real thing this time.

3. Lady from Lady and the Tramp, animated dog: Oh c’mon, I’m not saying I’d actually have sex with her! She’s not even a real dog!

2. A pizza from Nicky D’s in Silverlake, pizza: The only other non-human on the list besides the dog (and I would entertain an argument regarding Ariel). I think my favorite topping is green pepper, mushroom and onion, but it’s a really tough call and to make an ordered list of how much I like such things just seems petty. When it comes to sexy, nothing beats fresh, hot pizza. Except…

1. Eudora Welty, author, deceased: “Eudora Welty was known as a humble and kind woman always ready to make others comfortable wherever they were.” By Josh & Josh, fourth grade, 2007. Yeah, and she had a great ass. Man, fourth graders make my job easy. Check out some other fine ladies who didn’t quite make the cut this year. Remember, there’s always 2009. I’m looking at you, Louisa May Alcott! That is, if you can keep up the sexy!

Dan Samiljan is a writer/filmmaker in LA

SEXY SONGS TO SEX TO

“This Ain’t Sex” - Usher

“Trading Places” - Usher

“Pretty Please (Love Me)” - Estelle ft. Cee-Lo

“Customer (remix)” - Raheem DeVaughn ft. R. Kelly

“Streetlove” - Lloyd

PREVIOUSLY ON THIS SEXY RECORDING

Scarlett And Natalie Are Elegant Cockteases

Sasha Grey Digs Big Dicks And Jean-Luc Godard

Sampling Hollywood’s Sexiest Jewish Girls

So…What are you doing this weekend?