after a bunch of requests, i’m finally getting around to adding a section to the blog about the music i’m listening to.
the plan is to create a weekly playlist and post under the “playlist” page at the top of my blog, every monday. (after this post, they’ll no longer show up on the home page). some of the songs will be new, some will be old. most will be sad. some will be happy. some will have singing. some will be instrumentals. rule: 20 tracks a week. basically this will be a snapshot of what i’m listening to that week. (links go to the individual track on amazon.com. if the individual track is not available, i link to the album). in most cases you should be able to preview the track, just in case you want to buy it. i wish i could just post the music here, but i’d probably end up in jail.
anyway, use the comment section to post your playlists, if you so choose.
here we go…

1. “in the dark places” by pj harvey – from the album, let england shake – there should be an international holiday every time this woman releases a new album. sadly, there’s not. but i’m working on it…
2. “laredo” by band of horses – from the album, infinite arms – unusually upbeat for my tastes. makes me want to visit laredo more than any other song about laredo.
3. “charlie hustle” by madlib – from the album, madlib medicine show volume #11: low budget high fi music – this song is rad for several reasons, but the best reason to listen to this is to hear the line, “never catch me drinkin’ ciroc…” a perfect dig at puff daddy.
4. “femme fatale” by aloe black – from the album, good things – an r&b version of a velvet underground classic? sold.
5. “two finger symphony” by stereolab – from the album, not music – all stereolab songs exactly the same to me. and that’s a good thing.
6. “in the night” by gary wilson – from the album, electric endicott – the weirdest, creepiest dude in all of music. his songs all seem to be about unrequited love. wait. that’s putting it nicely. they’re actually about stalking. but he writes the most upbeat songs about stalking that i’ve ever heard.
7. “all night long” by south san gabriel – from the album, eyas – a way slowed down version of a song you might recognize. originally sung by a dude who’s now famous for being nicole richie’s dad. what a shame.
8. “san pedro” by mogwai – from the album, hardcore will never die, but you will – an instrumental band with a sense of humor? seems to be the case with these guys (such a rare thing, i think) based on their album/song titles. there’s nothing funny about this song, it’s just really, really awesome.
9. “silly bears” by akron/family – from the album, s/t ii: the cosmic birth and journey of shinju tnt – i just adore this song.
10. “one little dance” by the moovers – from the album, eccentric soul: the deep city label – the numero record label has never, ever released anything bad in it’s history. i swear. they unearth limited release (mostly) r&b songs, compile them and release them as full-length records. there’s no individual link for this song, but trust me. the whole record is great. if you like r&b even a little bit, you should buy this (and every other numero release).
11. “sad fuzz” by ty segall – from the album, melted. good ol’ fashioned rock n roll. from 2010. this guy does it better than just about anyone out there. this one will be stuck in your head all day.
12. “motherfucker=redeemer (part two)” by godspeed you! black emperor – from the album, yanqui u.x.o. i’ve been in love with this band for a very long time. they haven’t released a record in like 9 years, and they rarely tour, but i had the privilege of seeing them here in los angeles on wednesday. imagine a really pissed off, politically motivated orchestra that hates the tyranny of corporate america playing instrumental music that will crush your soul. oh. and they’re from canada. and they have no sense of humor.
13. “plain as your eyes can see” by jim sullivan – from the album, u.f.o. apparently this guy just up and vanished one day in 1975. i’m glad he recorded this song before doing so.
14. “death seat” by wooden wand – from the album, death seat – this guys words will melt your heart.
15. “electric endicott” by gary wilson – from the album, electric endicott – yeah. another song by that creepy, pervy, stalker guy. maddy can not get enough of this one, yelling in the car, “stars in your eyes! stars in your eyes!” it’s a line in the song. the subject of the song is a woman named mary. i was singing the song in the car and changed mary to maddy. and now my child insists that i sing it to her all the time. i can’t sing for shit. but this guy can.
16. “pregnant” by r. kelly – from the album, untitled – i just read the most incredible interview (conducted by will oldham) with r. kelly. i know, i know…he peed on someone. and he sang, “i believe i can fly.” those things truly suck, but big fucking deal. he is a lunatic genius who can sing like a motherfucker. just listen to this song and you’ll forget about all that other stuff. plus he created the hip-hopera, “trapped in the closet
” which may be humankind’s crowning achievement. (for the record, i totally thought this song and just about all of the others on the record were a joke. turns out they’re not).
17. “new wonder” by bonnie “prince” billy and the cairo gang – from the 10″ single, island brothers – speaking of will oldham…here’s a song by his alter ego, bonnie “prince” billy. it’s sad. incredibly sad. maybe the saddest song of all time. but it’s so amazingly good that i can’t quit listening to it. the first time i heard the song was while watching the video for it. if the song is sad, the video is devastating. i mean, i saw it twice and i will never, ever watch it again. i cried the first time. and bawled the second time. the video is linked here if you really want to see it. i don’t recommend watching it. seriously. but you should click here and buy the record. the money goes to a good cause, namely edge outreach’s efforts to provide clean water and education in earthquake-ravaged haiti.
18. “a view of the sky” by paleo – from the album, a view of the sky – i ordered this record back in november and it finally arrived last week. when i opened the package, i was like, “what the hell is this?” i listened to this, the first song on the album, and i had my answer. “it is awesome.” i’m glad it finally arrived.
19. lindisfarne ii by james blake – from the album, james blake – a british, dubstep version of bon iver. just buy this. you’ll love it. the rest of the record is equally good, except for on that one song where he sounds like aaron neville. i skip that one every time i listen to the record. you can as well.
20. “shell games” by bright eyes – from the album, the people’s key – for a reason that probably only makes sense to me, i’ve been wanting to give up on this guy and his music for years. but i just can’t. it’s songs like this that keep me coming back.




















62 Comments
Dude, this new feature is going to cost me a lot of mullar. Thanks for sharing though, top stuff. Still listen to that Mayer Hawthorne album you once recommended.
Nice!! Now I can stop saving money to buy a plane ticket so I could fly to your house, break-in, and steal your record collection! Been waiting a long time for you to do this brother – looking forward to Mondays now!
i have downloaded a couple of iron and wine albums because of the links you gave. and really enjoy them.thankyou. oh and hayden. you have opened a whole different style of music to me.
if people who download music from your selection also donated to LLF you could raise a whole lot of money?? spreading the joy.
I’m looking forward to checking these out. Thanks for broadening my musical horizon.
I’m going to try and expand my musical repertoire, please pass around the sad soul stuff. The PJ Harvey stuff reminds me of Mandalay for some reason. 1 & 13, love. You need to post one of top sad songs only. A full 20 gut wrench, please. Personally, I don’t think there are words that can pull necessary grief from a person, but music does – it even keeps the raw that we want to keep raw right on the surface. Somehow, that’s healing. Thanks for sharing.
Sweet!! I’ve never heard of any of them aside from R. Kelly, but I’ll take a listen to them all. Great idea!
This is my playlist for driving with the windows down
Playlist title: Electric Avocado Roll (Not in its entirety…but the ones I like the best!)
Human After All – Daft Punk
Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger – Daft Punk
My Moon My Man – Feist
Machine In the Ghost – The Faint
I Dance Alone – Swayzak
Lock it Down – Digital Assassins
Mini Mini Mini – KMFDM
Free (Black Noise Remix) – Vast
Welcome to Chicago Mother Fucker – Kill Hannah
Another Breakfast with You – Ladytron
Daydream in Blue – I Monster
Satellite – TV on the Radio
Going Nowhere – Cut Copy
Galactic Lover- The World Domination vs. Adam Sky
Dance on My Grave – Ghostland Observatory
Fuuuuun – Be Your Own Pet
Like a Pen – The Knife
Yay! This is going to be fun. Thanks for doing this.
btw, there is nothing special about Laredo, TX. Just trust me on this one.
wow great selection! The Bonnie Prince Billy is a new favorite, though, I didn’t listen to your warning about the video.
a small playlist:
-Frightened Rabbit- Old Old Fashioned
-Bonnie Prince Billy- Lay and Love
-The Microphones- The Pull
-Viking Moses- My Husband’s Hand
-Seabear- Arms
Hi Matt –
Awesome idea about the playlists! There is a website 8tracks.com that allows you to create playlists and publish them to the public – anyone can listen to the full tracks of the songs, and it can link to amazon.com for people to purchase I have never created a playlist so, I am not sure what is involved but…listening to the site is pretty awesome!
Can’t wait to see the upcoming playlists!
I have only ever heard of R. Kelly. I will admit though that I am an Iron and Wine fan sure to you previously taking about them.
How sad you have so few cds/albums to choose from.
love it! i’ve always wanted to dig through your record collection. you’ve now reduced the number of strangers/creeps who want to raid your house. nice work!
thanks!!!
Oh. I read this again and missed the part about posting mine… I really came back to say, What’s up with the losers posting comments on your Twitter pics of Maddy about sexy pictures??? Spammers suck!
OK, Um. I’m really in to Concrete Blonde lately. Their older stuff, early 90′s. It’s one of those CD’s I hadn’t thought of in years and I recently burned them all for my iPod.
Billy Joel is always good. Always.
Brandi Carlile
Def Leppard in their big hair (mullet) glory days. Never skip those songs on my iPod
Hall and Oates. I said it. I love them.
I really like Lady Antebellum. Even if you hate country, give them a try. Very talented group.
I’m reasonable certain most of those are made up bands. Except PJ Harvey. I happened to see PJ as an opener for another concert so I know that one is real. Oh and R. Kelly. But the rest, made up.
seriously, just when i’ve been trying to cut back on my music budget???
seriously, this is a great idea and long overdue. your music recommendations have always been great!
i would sign your petition for a pj harvey holiday.
Thanks for the list of your music, I can’t wait to listen. You should check out “Your Biggest Fan” by Voxtrot. It’s on iTunes, I don’t think they put it on an album. It’s my favorite of all their songs. You should also listen to Jared Van Fleet, he used to be in Voxtrot before they broke up. Search him on youtube, and he comes up under Sparrow House. The first result is called “Sparrow House on Almost Late Show” and it’s Jared singing “When I’m Gone.” It’s such a beautiful song.
This? Awesome.
I really think you’d enjoy these guys:
elsinore – http://www.elsinoremusic.net/
& I’m certain that you’d enjoy these guys
http://www.corychisel.com/music/death-won%E2%80%99t-send-letter
Yay! FINALLY!! Looking forward to checking these tunes out….I love exploring new music and so far your taste in music has not disappointed me
That is a sick record collection you have. I am 100% with you on the pj harvey holiday. But whenever she makes a new record, it’s all I can listen to for at least a month.
r kelly wt…?
what do you think of the new iron & wine? people are going all “dylan gone electric” on him! I love it the more I hear it though!!!
Matt, for a second when I saw “femme fatale” on the list, I thought it was going to be Britney Spears’ new CD. Then I realized this was your blog and knew better… haha
Love the song selections!
Matt I am alwaysblooking for more eclectic music to listen to so thanks for sharing your playlist ever since you mentioned a while back that the last Kanye West album was good I went out and bought it and I was not disappointed. I am looking forward to listening to this selection all the songs sound awesome
Great picks! I see the Jamie xx + Gil Scott-Heron box set on the bottom shelf. My poor college status is jealous. Love the new addition to the blog, Matt. You’ve got great taste in music and this playlist shows it. Any plans for sxsw? I’ll be there putting on a showcase and day party, stop by!
Awesome! I have never heard of some of these, so I am going to check them out. Have you ever listened to City and Colour? They’re definitely one of my top couple of favorites!
this is probably not going to show up in my reader every week, which is sad. i will probably never remember to come here and look.
i’ve been listening to starfucker a lot lately. also: wild nothing, small black, harlem, white denim, best coast, caribou, here we go magic, girls, pinback, junip (saw him a few months ago with sharon van etten – heaven), tennis (LOVE tennis), warpaint, tame impala… this is all i can come up with. lots of people i want to see at sxsw, but sadly, even though i’m in austin, i have FOUR DAMN KIDS. (who i love dearly, but yeah, not going to sxsw for some years to come.)
other points:
- the single most beautiful sound i ever heard was laetitia sadier practicing acapella in the old gym at my college. stereolab came to play there, and i was in a japanese religions class sitting by an open window. beautiful blue sky and breeze and her voice. i swear to god it was like tiny french angels.
- holyshit! is that a version of 69 love songs i’ve never seen?! i only ever had it on cd, so i suppose i shouldn’t be surprised by its vinyl incarnation, but damn, i totally would’ve bought that back then on vinyl if i’d seen it. also: would not have figured you for a stephin fan. (maybe you’re not.)
- i am proud of myself for knowing 12 of your 20 listed artists.
- i will be out of town when you are here (austin) at book people. i am totally sending my husband as my proxy.
p.s. i am sad gybe has no sense of humor. i mean, i THOUGHT so, but i would’ve hoped i was wrong.
p.p.s. i saw pj harvey in an interview a few months ago promoting her new album. i thought she’d look really old by now, but she’s TOTALLY HOT.
p.p.s.s. bonnie prince billy interviewed r. kelly? i think my head just exploded.
Thanks for the suggestions! Because of your past suggestions, I have discovered a whole new world of music I would never have experienced otherwise…Hayden, Arthur Russell, Pink Mountaintops…and of course, the bearded god of alt-folk, J. Tillman…..looking forward to checking out some of the artists you listed this week….oh, and by the way, “New Wonder” is pretty great, but if you’re looking for hauntingly, heartbreaking sadness, nothing will compete with “The Way”, in my humble opinion…whenever that song comes up on my iPod shuffle, I have to physically stop what I’m doing to absorb it……
So, you are not much into downloading music, eh? You are going to have to add onto your. ]house – that is quite the collection!
Ah, my poor husband would have a collection like that, but the guy is such a good guy, when we were younger and really broke, he would take his best stuff and sell it. It always broke my heart, and he never got much for anything, but hey, it kept the kids fed, right?
He is not a blog reader, or a lover of what one might call “typical” popular music – I think he might enjoy checking out this new section! Thanks!
Also missed the part about posting some faves.
Keb Mo! He’s great when you want something a little upbeat. Anything Simon & Garfunkel, and Tracy Chapman. James Taylor. BRYAN ADAMS. Loudon Wainwright. Sugarland. Josh Groban. The Police. Fleetwood Mac. Aging myself, here. I like so much stuff!
Oh while the husband is away the wife will shop new music. I will then blame itunes so I can see next weeks post..HA!
This week we have listened to
Olly Murs
Johnny Lang
Mumford and Sons
Bruno Mars
Zac Brown Band
Francesca Battistelli
Kings of Leon
Thanks for sharing! I found a few of them on http://www.grooveshark.com to listen to.
My husband has a huge cd collection too (almost 800) but I think you have more.
Holy shit! And I thought my album collection was impressive… doesn’t hold a candle to yours. Wowza! And not even going to try and compare the CDs.
~Kim D in FL
Thanks so much for putting this together! I am looking forward to checking these out.
Two things I learned today: 1)Next time you say don’t watch it, I’ll listen. 2)I don’t ever want to see that video again.
Wow.
Oh, and that’s a lot of music.
I noticed #17 and have seen you reference Bonnie “Billy” Prince in the past. Check out this short film…
http://grassrootsrecordco.com/hombre_sencillo/
My brother is one of the directors, the cinematographer and he created the score.
Hope you like it! Great music list by the way! Thanks for sharing!
~Liz
Blackest Eyes – Porcupine Tree
Freakshow – The Cure
Comfortably Numb – Pink Floyd
Self Control – Laura Branigan
Thunder Kiss ’65 – Rob Zombie
Wendy – Concrete Blonde
Hello (Turn Your Radio On) – Shakespears Sister
Whenever you write about music it takes me back to visting my grandparents at Pilgrim Place and strolling into the village to putter around Rhino Records.
Love this!!! I’m a lazy music fan and will really appreciate the fact that I can simply click here and sample your long, long list of music I’ve never heard of
I’m crying at your r. kelly remarks. I’m a closet r.kelly fan and always feel like a dirty whore when I say i like his songs…i mean, Ignition (Remix)? genius.
i’ll have to listen to pregnant.
this week i’m listening to adele’s new album, seriously can’t get enough and go to sleep thinking about how I want to listen to it more. I’ve got problems, but it’s that good (and kinda sad so you’d probably like it).
That music section is the best idea ever! I’ve been reading your blog for a long time and love, love, LOVE your taste in music.
When you did a guest post on another blog about your favourite songs a while ago I made a “Matt” playlist with them on Grooveshark. And it’s thanks to you that I now know Iron & Wine (can’t wait to see him next week, when he’s playing here in London).
you have horrible taste in music.
I have to admit, after seeing your twitter posting, I was sure I’d see some Bieber *giggle*
I should definitely have taken your advice about the New Wonder video. But I didn’t. That is some fucked up shit. Good song, though.
about damn time! this is a fantastic idea.
awake my soul – mumford & sons
helplessness blues – fleet foxes
you got what i need – joshua radin
skinny love – bon iver
I, too, now have Iron and Wine songs on my iPod, thanks to you. When they play, my daughter calls them “Maddy’s songs”. I can’t wait to check out these playlists. And, I can’t wait for your book to arrive.
Awesome! You’ve previously introduced me to music I would not have discovered on my own like Iron and Wine, so this new feature is going to be great!
How about including a short playlist of Madeline’s. We are always on the lookout for more cool kid music.
Impressive, Matt! You obviously share fine taste in music.
But, I, among the rest of your readers am also so thankful that you decided to add this section to your blog. So…thank you! A thousand times thank you!!! I used to work in a recored store so I’m always glad to know of those who share a love of vinyl.
As if I needed more reason to spend time on your blog than I already do
Since your from the MN, as am I, perhaps you’ve heard of a little shop called the Electric Fetus? http://www.electricfetus.com/rel/v2_home.php?storenr=227&deptnr=21
And p.s., You are probably one of a few people who might convince me to listen to an R.Kelly track! lol.
Awesome, thanks for this! Much shorter version (I get stuck in a groove on two or three songs …)
1. Tom Waits – Come On Up to the House – Mule Variations. Amazing song, amazing artist. One of those life-changing handful.
2. June Hymn – Decemberists – The King is Dead. An uplifting ballad, at least in so far as I describe it.
3. The Mountain Goats – Genesis 3:23 – The Life of the World to Come
4. The Avett Brothers – The Perfect Space – I and Love and You. Something about the lyric, “I wanna have pride, like my mother has, but not like the kind in the Bible that turns you bad” that makes me choke up almost every time.
5. Kanye West – Runaway – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Yeah, I said it.
6. Iron & Wine – Upward Over the Mountain – The Creek Drank the Cradle. I’m pretty sure if I ever have a son and he has plays this for me I will cry for the rest of my life.
7. Favourite Sons – Tear the Room Apart – Down Beside Your Beauty
8. Neutral Milk Hotel – Oh Comely – In an Aeroplane Over the Sea. To be fair I’ve listened to this once a day since I was a sophomore in college. Which was a long ass time ago.
I was going to attempt to make it 10, but those are really the best on my list right now. Thanks Matt.
Matt-
I read your blog everyday and everyday I think to myself you and my 17 year old son would get along so well. Your writing reminds me of him. I think that he is amazingly talented (but apparently that doesn’t count because I am his mom) at writing and music. I am going to leave the link on here for his you tube. All of his writing/music is pretty dark but beautiful at the same time. Thank you for this amazing blog and I CAN NOT wait for the book.
http://www.youtube.com/user/TheAtomicIsHere
http://www.facebook.com/theatomic
Oh, I love this game – I used to make mix CDs for friends when I had free time.
These are some of the earworms I’ve had over the last several months…
“One Touch” – LCD Soundsystem
“We Float” – PJ Harvey
“Bright Lights Bigger City” – Cee Lo Green
“Howlin’ For You” – The Black Keys
“Sincerely, Jane” – Janelle Monae
“The Words That Maketh Murder” – PJ Harvey
“Mansions of Los Feliz” – Eels
“Something Like This” – Scissor Sisters
“The Village in the Morning” – Magnetic Fields
and to totally destroy my lingering shreds of musical credibility…
“Teenage Dream” – Katy Perry*
* (my 4-year-old loves it. We heard it repeatedly over a weekend with friends who had just gotten the album. And the tune IS super-catchy… lyrics are beyond clunky though)
hi matt.
i also happen to think you would love cory chisel… minnesota roots, like you.
listen to…
“so wrong for me”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6tNImOMEUs
“in the deep end”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_KxX67B06I&feature=related
“on my side”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYQOgcwO9r0
and if you’re into the preservation hall jazz band, check out this video from backstage at the newport folk festival, with cory chisel…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imfmuxyUKgI&feature=related
enjoy!
…and thanks for your suggestions as well.
OK, am I the only one creeped out by the cover art for Ty Seagull?
Here’s my current playlist:
I Believe in You- Black Dub
January Hymn- The Decemberists
Tightrope- Yeasayer
Ballad of Love & Hate- The Avett Brothers
In My Time- Kurt Vile
Royal Blue- Cold War Kids
Young Blood- The Naked & Famous
Love’s Not a Competition (But I’m Winning)- The Kaiser Chiefs
Pumped Up Kicks- Foster the People
Anything, Anything- Dramarama
and (don’t laugh- this is my guilty pleasure song to sing along to while driving my daughter to daycare each morning)
Mrs. Potter’s Lullaby- Counting Crows.
Playlist of today:
Blonde Redhead – Violent Life
Muse – City of Delusion
Megadeth – In My Darkest Hour
George Jones – He Stopped Loving Her Today
No Use For A Name: Straight From The Jacket
Madball – Demonstrating My Style
Radiohead – Paranoid Android
Soulja Boy – Kiss Me Through The Phone
Sia – Electric Bird
John Lennon – Imagine
Pantera – This Love
In Flames – Jotun
DMX – Where The Hood At
Dido – Thank You
Daddy Yankee – Gasolina (Don’t judge me!!)
Portishead. That is all.
You should check out School of Seven Bells, beautiful sound. http://www.amazon.com/Disconnect-From-Desire/dp/B003UJN4DI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1299112579&sr=8-1
thanks so much!!! ive been waiting for you to do this =) ::awesomesauce::
this is what i’ve been listening to lately:
1. you make me smile – aloe blacc
2. baby doll – the gabe dixon band
3. the predatory wasp of the palisades is out to get us! – sufjan stevens
4. a girl, a boy, and a graveyard – jeremy messersmith
5. home – edward sharpe & the magnetic zeros
6. my body – young the giant
7. all alone in an empty house – lost in the trees
8. virginia is for lovers – mat kearney
9. fire & dynamite – drew holcomb
10. oh adeline – stephen kellogg & the sixers
11. the cave – mumford & sons
12. city on the hill – eric tepe
13. kids (MGMT cover) – the ooks of hazzard
14. greed – yoav
15. stronger – seabird
16. sleeping sickness – city & colour
17. the biblical sense of the word – quiet company
i highly recommend quiet company, if you’ve never listened to them. they’re my favorite band right now.
Have you ever listened to anything from The Black Keys? Try their album called Brothers.
By looking at your music list, I think you would really like their music.
Thanks for sharing!
Michelle
I’ve only heard of 1 song on your list, but that’s not surprising to me. I so missed the days when you put the songs that you were listening too, so I’m glad to see the playlist greatness.
My go to songs…
re: Stacks – Bon Iver
Moorestown – Sun Kil Moon
The Trapeze Swinger – Iron & Wine
Ribbons of Glass – J. Tillman
Lost Verses – Sun Kil Moon
Awake My Soul – Mumford & Sons
Nantes – Beirut
Venice – Beirut
Really digging the Local Natives now too.
I have been totally waiting for you to do this!!! I always thought if I could pick someone to load up my ipod, you would top the list! Can’t wait for the big download and a car trip! Thanks Matt!
thanks for taking the time to do this, i love music!
Cloud Cult…Minnesota band, amazing live, beautiful songs…
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