Swap a CD: 15 Recently Posted CDs

Diana BBC Funeral Service - Various Artists

Various Artists — 2009-11-15T11:52:53-05:00

Radio Movie Classics Miracle on 34th Street - Various Artists

Various Artists — 2009-11-15T10:41:13-05:00

This American Life Stories of Hope and Fear - Various Artists

Various Artists — 2009-11-08T14:31:02-05:00

This two-CD set presents 11 stories originally heard on the popular syndicated public radio show This American Life. If you're familiar with the program, you'll know what to expect here to some degree: diverse, often eccentric, often real-life tales, laid over whimsical pieces of music and sound effects used for accentuation and contrast. Even within the fairly limited space of an 11-story set (which does cover a good two hours and 20 minutes or so), however, it's impossible to generalize about what's on offer here. Just three of these are pieces in which someone is interviewed by show host Ira Glass, which might be the format for which the program is most known. In others, the protagonists themselves tell their stories; in one, a woman reads from a notebook she kept as a 13-year-old; in another, a list of "Fears of Your Life" is read by someone other than the writer; and the narrative by David Sedaris, the most celebrated figure whose voice is heard on these discs, is an obviously fictional (and somewhat cutesy) tale, "So a Chipmunk and a Squirrel Walk into a Bar." The stories themselves cover an extremely wide territory: a failed attempt to do standup "karaoke" comedy, a first-person account of the effects of changing gender from female to male, a recollection of a retarded sibling, and (the most amusing track) a play-by-play recount of a horrifying months-long dispute over a phone company bill. Wry humor might be the grace note most often sounded, but there's also hardship without pathos, complicated ambiguous familial tension and affection, and self-discovery both embarrassed and humble. The separation of the contents into a "Hope" disc and a "Fear" disc is fairly arbitrary, given how those emotions (and others) usually overlap within the stories. Depending on your inclinations, some stories will strike stronger chords than others. But these are strong, representative examples of what this long-running show has become known for in its lengthy stint on the airwaves. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide

Tales from the Tomb Frightening Fables from the Darkside - Various Artists

Various Artists — 2009-11-08T00:48:17-05:00

Radio Shows Dracula 071138 - Various Artists

Various Artists — 2009-11-05T21:22:17-05:00

A Certain Level of Denial - Karen Finley

Karen Finley — 2009-11-03T13:45:27-05:00

A Certain Level of Denial requires a certain amount of tolerance since this is the literary/spoken word portion of a performance piece and thus divorced from any visual context beyond the booklet photos. It's also very much of a time -- the days and years of rage when the AIDS plague was decimating large segments of the population -- and you wonder how it's going to hold up divorced from that time frame. Still, it's very wearing to listen to an hour of pure Karen Finley rant and rage against indifference (both family and society), homophobia, and women's roles and place in society. The funny thing is that Finley is an artist, but she's not into metaphor, symbolism, or subtlety -- it's all about naming and venting in no uncertain terms what she doesn't like. She rejects any dynamics in vocal delivery beyond her two chosen voices -- normal or screechin' and ragin' full on -- and she's not at all funny here (as she has been on some musical pieces she recorded). Story pieces ("Woman's Best Friend," "Roadkill," the two "Aunt Enids") fare best mostly because they offer a bit of a break from the onslaught, and "In Memory Of" is a rarity in conveying heartfelt feelings and memories. But for someone with such a radical reputation, the objects of her scorn are surprisingly traditional, and one measure of how Finley fails here is that you can shrug off pieces like "The Session" and ""It's My Body" with "Yeah, yeah, right, I know that rap." There just aren't any original insights going on and the "I'm so tired of well-meaning people" mantra she finally arrives at in "He's Going Home" echoes Faith No More's We Care a Lot, but sans the irony and thus far less effective. She misses nuances and rhythms that could bring "An Act of Conscience" to life, but then understatement has never been part of her art. Neither is consistency, because there have been times she's so dead on target you get put through an emotional wringer, and then there are the other times when she's so far off the mark you want to rein her in and make her stop. The latter wins out by far on A Certain Level of Denial -- what value it may have is as a social document of a time and place when venting anger was a necessary catharsis. ~ Don Snowden, All Music Guide

Valley of Christmas - Andrei Codrescu

Andrei Codrescu — 2009-10-26T18:12:21-05:00

The popular NPR commentator and novelist Andrei Codrescu teams with noted New Orleans producer/guitarist Mark Bingham for Valley of Christmas, an intriguing fable depicting a Bayou couple's journey toward parenthood which was originally broadcast on the All Things Considered program. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide

This American Life Lies Sissies Fiascoes - Various Artists

Various Artists — 2009-10-21T17:37:56-05:00

This American Life: Lies, Sissies & Fiascos is a two-CD set featuring highlights from the award-winning Public Radio International show hosted by Ira Glass. Documentary and fictional writing are featured on the weekly show, which centers on a new theme with each episode. Lies, Sissies & Fiascoes contains 11 of the best moments from the show's first two years on the air, and includes pieces by some of This American Life's regulars like David Sedaris and Dishwasher Pete, as well as a new song by They Might Be Giants. The CD set proves to be a unique document from a refreshingly different show. ~ Heather Phares, All Music Guide

Think Tank - Henry Rollins

Henry Rollins — 2009-10-21T10:42:18-05:00

For the uninitiated, Henry Rollins may be a puzzling dichotomy at best. Perhaps best known for his aggro-punk musical rantings and bulging tattoos, Rollins contains a very opposite side within his imposing frame. On this two-disc, live album, which was recorded on opposite ends of the Earth, Rollins lets both sides loose on the ears and minds of his devoted fans and those who may want to enter his maddened world. Clever, sharp, and brutally honest, Rollins has the self-control of a dormant volcano and sets his vocal lava upon the people and places that make our lives a little more aggravating. And no one is safe! From "Bubba" Clinton to Kenneth Starr, David Hasselhoff to Michael "Bolt-head" Bolton, husbands and wives, and the cast of Friends, everybody gets a taste of Rollins' right-minded rage. Along the way, he brings his two sides together by dipping into his musical realm as well. From the opening singalong and the renaming of El NiÑo as "The First Four Black Sabbath Albums," to the closing lounge lizard rendition of the Rollins Band's appropriately two-faced shredder "Liar," Rollins realizes his nefarious talents and alternative icon status and uses them to a combined effect which is simultaneously duplicitous and unifying, demonstrating his command of words and emotions to open our eyes and ears more than they may want to be. Dangerously intelligent commentary. ~ Matthew Robinson, All Music Guide

Diana BBC Funeral Service - Various Artists

Various Artists — 2009-10-18T13:09:08-05:00

20th Century Time Capsule - Various Artists

Various Artists — 2009-10-13T21:36:29-05:00

Whoa, is this a weird release! The whole idea behind Buddha's 20th Century Time Capsule is to offer a whiplash oral history of the information century, by presenting audio clips from each decade. It could be from speeches, events, ads, newscasts, even records -- doesn't matter, as long as it's representative. Interesting theory and an interesting listen, even if it's a bit maddening and entirely too novel for its own good. After all, it moves so quickly that it demands concentrated, dedicated listening. But it's such a weird, headache-inducing experience that you really wouldn't want to put it on a whole lot. Still, for that one dedicated listen, it's fascinating -- much like a fleshed-out version of "We Didn't Start the Fire." And it makes its point clear -- a lot a weird stuff went down in the 20th century. So, I guess that does make it a pretty effective time capsule after all. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide

Get in the Van On the Road with Black Flag - Henry Rollins

Henry Rollins — 2009-10-08T19:20:28-05:00

While Henry Rollins has enough of a reputation over the years for his spoken word material, his best effort actually has its roots in his Black Flag days. An abridgement of his journals and reflections on first becoming a fan and then a member of Black Flag, Get in the Van: On the Road is an often fantastic and quite a hilarious peek into not only his past but that of American punk music across the nation. Though Rollins usually succeeds best with an audience to interact with, his low, steady intensity carries well through the disc, and in some respects all he has to do is let the story tell itself. If there's a specific theme throughout, unsurprisingly, it's about Rollins learning more about self-reliance while the band itself provides inspiration and a few lessons about life along the way -- whether or not one agrees with them is up to the listener. But ultimately it's all about the anecdotes, and the stories alone range from the humorous to the often frightening -- the many tales about police abuse of punk audiences and bands are enough to make one want to carry off a slew of retrospective arrests on the boys in blue. But on the flip side, there are tales ranging from Rollins launching himself from a stage and ending up on top of Jello Biafra in the audience to wandering into a venue to find out who the Misfits cover band he was hearing was and encountering the Misfits themselves. Rollins praises Michael Stipe as an early friend and then flips it around to describe a show with Venom (and their self-described "black f*ckin' metal!") as being a case of having to suffer fools, not very gladly. Then there's Ultravox and Midge Ure's in-person dismissal of Black Flag as "dross" -- but Rollins gets his revenge by mentioning Ure's booties. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide

Emissary A Journey in Spoken Word and Music - The Acoustic Poets Network

The Acoustic Poets Network — 2009-10-04T21:48:41-05:00

A Rollins in the Wry - Henry Rollins

Henry Rollins — 2009-09-26T21:09:35-05:00

You'd never peg Henry Rollins, former frontman for Black Flag, an '80s thrash metal band that enjoyed cult-like success, for a liberal, politically correct kind of guy. The muscle-bound, militant-looking Rollins, who later enjoyed a diverse career as an actor, author, and television host of Night Visions (Fox Network), has seen more success as a non-musician. A Rollins in the Wry reveals another side of the artist -- spoken-word performer. The contents of this entertaining CD were taken from two shows recorded in the spring of 1999 at Los Angeles' CafÉ Luna. On tap: 13 tracks of Rollins' musings on society, politics, pop culture, and his career. By far, one of the funniest skits is "Clintonese." "They should teach Clinton in college," says Rollins of his admiration of the former president's savvy verbal performance during 1999's impeachment trial. "Red light, green light, yes or no?...and he's like 'What?'" Another winning moment comes by way of "Language," where Rollins reads a letter that he received from a fan named Boris from the Czech Republic. He extracts one part of the letter, which he describes as, "One of the greatest sentences I have ever read in my life." Boris writes: "On two concert I'm should of collected photo, but small, fat technologist be insane." Rollins' interpretation: "He took his roll of film to Rite Aid and had a bad experience. I think Boris got his film f*cked up by the technologist." In fact, Rollins seems to have a fixation with Rite Aid. The store even gets its own self-titled treatment. This is an engaging listening experience. Rollins' commentary leaves no stone unturned -- gender idiosyncrasies, homosexuality, the media, the tragedy at Columbine (where he takes a serious turn), and other topics. His vocal delivery is dynamic; listeners could easily envision his facial expressions and contortions as if they were sitting at CafÉ Luna. And Rollins has no problem pointing the finger at himself -- a sure-fire way at gaining trust and a connection with audiences. He is honest, without offending, and gives the impression that he genuinely has no biases -- he's just a curious observer of life. And the world, through Rollins' eyes, is an interesting, offbeat, and funny place. ~ Liana Jonas, All Music Guide

A Tribute to Diana Princess of Wales - Various Artists

Various Artists — 2009-09-24T19:12:23-05:00