Sign in

Music from the Basement

@ouroldcds.bsky.social
42 followers 15 following 444 posts

Rediscovering our music collection, one random selection at a time.

PostsRepliesMedia
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 25/08/2025
Medeski Martin & Wood - Combustication (1998) In the late 90s MMW were on a roll. Their grooves were loose and wormed their way into the listeners deepest recesses. 1/2
100
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 25/08/2025
Violent Femmes - The Blind Leading the Naked (1986) The third album from the Milwaukee trio. Produced by Jerry Harrison, there is a lot going on here, from the punkish opening blast of "Old Mother Reagan" to the spiritual raveup "Faith" to a cover of T-Rex's "Children of the Revolution." 1/2
130
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 22/08/2025
Bastille - Bad Blood (2013) Debut album from Bastille. Entertaining, epic, and catchy. They're a fun live act. #NowSpinning
011
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 18/08/2025
The Who - Who's Next (deluxe edition) (2003) Who's Next is one of the textbook capital-R Rock Albums. Essential and undeniable. Macho and vulnerable, chaotic and focused. The majority of its tracks still get spins on AOR and classic rock radio. 1/3
100
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 15/08/2025
Maceo Parker - Life on Planet Groove (1992) 98% Funky Stuff! Hot jams from Maceo Parker, Pee Wee Ellis, and Fred Wesley, each of whom led James Brown's band at various points in the Godfather of Soul's fame. Recorded live in Germany '92, these songs will put a smile on even the most dour cats.
010
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 14/08/2025
Def Leppard - Hysteria (1987) "Step inside! Walk this way!" Oh, the Mutt Lange of it all. This album was inescapable my first two years of high school. It felt like every song was on MTV nonstop. I have a lot of opinions on this. It's produced within an inch of being parody ...
100
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 13/08/2025
Tim McGraw - Tim McGraw & the Dance Hall Doctors (2002) It's wild to think "Red Rag Top" was such a big hit given its overt reference to an abortion. It's way more than that, though, and it's up to the listener to accept it as one facet in a relationship long gone. Heady content for country radio.
000
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 13/08/2025
Phish - Rift (1993) A wonderful concept album that takes the listener through a restless night of dreams. Anxiety, doubt, longing, panic, whimsical terror, head-scratching visions, and awakening all flit along. This rewards repeated listens. I love this album.
2132
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 11/08/2025
Kelly Clarkson - Breakaway (2004) 12 million Kelly Clarkson fans can't be wrong. No sophomore slump for the OG American Idol, this album is packed with hits that still get heavy radio rotation. The songs are produced right to the edge of melodramatic kitsch without going over. That's talent.
000
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 08/08/2025
moe. - No Guts, No Glory (2014) A relatively recent studio album from the jam giants. Tracks like "Annihilation Blues," "Silver Sun," and "Billy Goat" slotted into live shows seemlessly. #NowSpinning
010
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 08/08/2025
Rush - Chronicles (1990) Oddly enough, this is the only Rush release in the collection. I feel like I could've easily fallen down the Rush rabbit hole, but somehow never did. I appreciate the musical progression represented in these two discs.
100
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 01/08/2025
John Coltrane - Lush Life (1961) After Trane moved to Atlantic Records in 1960 and had big success with Giant Steps andy Favorite Things, his former label Prestige released Lush Life as a cash grab of sorts. All unreleased cash grabs should be as good as Lush Life. 1/2 #NowSpinning
120
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 30/07/2025
The Sundays - Blind (1992) A more ethereal outing than their debut. The unmistakable vocals of Harriet Wheeler dip and soar over David Gavurin's shimmering guitar. Their take on the Stones' "Wild Horses" fit perfectly. #NowSpinning
030
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 29/07/2025
The Black Crowes - Shake Your Money Maker (1990) Southern-fried Stones. I still love turning this one up loud and butchering the lyrics. It's such a great album, filled with grit and pathos. 1/2 #NowSpinning
151
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 28/07/2025
The Firm, Original Motion Soundtrack (1993) (Note: Not to be confused with the mid-80s Jimmy Page and Paul Rogers rock band The Firm.) Remember when everybody read John Grisham legal thrillers? Then they all started getting movie adaptations? This is the soundtrack to the one with Tom Cruise.
010
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) I've seen Fast Times dozens of times and honestly I can only place about half of the songs here in any scene. There's so much forgettable music here by huge stars and artists I couldn't name on a bet. 2/2 #NowSpinning
120
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 18/07/2025
Béla Fleck & the Flecktones - UFO Tofo (1992) The banjo as only Béla Fleck can play it. Complex edge-of-jazz and jam expeditions with Roy and Victor Wooten, and Howard Levy. Spontaneity and a lot of notes along the way in this live studio session. #NowSpinning
020
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 18/07/2025
Paul Westerberg - Suicaine Gratification (1999) A fairly laid back outing from Westerberg. A bit more All Shook Down than Let It Be, if that makes any sense to fans of The Replacements. Great lines like, "So don't pin your hopes, pin your dreams, on misanthropes, guys like me," are pure Westerberg.
000
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 18/07/2025
Grateful Dead - Dick's Picks Vol 9, 9/16/1990 MSG, NYC (1997) Shortly after the death of keyboardist Brent Mydland, the Dead found their newest member Vince Welnick and frequent guest Bruce Hornsby to round out the lineup. This show is from that time period. 1/2 #NowSpinning
140
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 17/07/2025
Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger (1991) Like a phillips head to the brain, this enigmatic, murky masterpiece delights in the sludge and then rains ice picks on your steel shore. It's an album I return to pummel my brain into emptiness. 1/2
110
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 17/07/2025
MC 900 Ft Jesus with DJ Zero - Hell with the Lid Off (1990) Industrial Funk Hip Hop Paranoia. Samples galore place this at a definite time and place in music history, though the vocals from Mark Griffin are anything but typical. Conspiracy, UFO's, Bigfoot, religion, etc. 1/2
100
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 14/07/2025
Midnight Oil - Blue Sky Mining (1990) A phenomenal album. The Oils continued their heavy invasion of the US charts and MTV with this set of social, economic, and ecological energy. "Forgotten Years" and "King of the Mountain" still shake the cobwebs loose. #NowSpinning
010
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 14/07/2025
Elizabeth Mitchell - You Are My Flower (1998) The debut folk album from Elizabeth Mitchell is delightful. Lo-fi, gentle, and engaging. It's music for kids that won't drive parents nuts. A sing-a-long style with earworms you'll be glad got stuck in your brain. #NowSpinning
010
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 12/07/2025
Aldo Ciccolini - Debussy Piano Works Vol V (1992) Solo piano works, including Debussy's most recognizable piece "Clare de Lune." #NowSpinning
010
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 11/07/2025
Marcia Ball / Irma Thomas / Tracy Nelson - Sing It! (1998) Blues, R&B, and a bit of gospel abound in this joyous set. Good stuff. #NowSpinning
010
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 08/07/2025
Thelonious Monk - The Complete Albums Collection 1957-61 (2015) A bargain find to begin filling in a big blind spot for me. Monk is always mentioned with the 20th century jazz giants. Solo, quartet, jazz orchestra. Works with Coltrane, Art Blakey & the Messengers. 1/2
120
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 08/07/2025
Phish - Junta (1988) Brimming with musical ideas, the first proper Phish studio album can hardly contain its enthusiasm. Sometimes it feels like music theory class gone astray, but most of the time the melodic feeling overwhelms. 1/
100
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 08/07/2025
Taylor Swift - Taylor Swift (2006) Taylor owns this again, so let's give it a listen. The songwriting is quite confident for a 16 year old, while the Nashville studio sound is full of pleasant if generic country. The twang from time to time is a bit suspect. I'd bet she laughs at those moments now.
120
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 06/07/2025
Miles Davis - Kind of Blue (1959) Absolutely essential. In the conversation for most important recordings of all time. Kind of Blue is soaked in intense feeling, yet can be studied note by note with equal fervor. For something so complex and radical in its time, it is very easy on the ears. 1/3
100
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 05/07/2025
The Bottle Rockets - The Brooklyn Side (1994) Straight outta Festus, Missouri, the Bottle Rockets make country music with nary a pickup, Stetson, or cowboy boot in sight. They namecheck Carlene Carter and Loretta Lynn, but it's standing in line for a welfare check in a cruel world. 1/2
100
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 04/07/2025
Phish - 07.15.03 USANA Amphitheatre, West Valley City, UT (2003) For me, this show is sub-par. I'll always be glad for a blissful "Theme from the Bottom" jam. The second set has a novel "Mr Completely" that falls into and out of a few rarities, but it's nothing I'd steer new ears toward. 1/2
110
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 03/07/2025
Blue Mountain - Roots (2001) Traditional songs updated with Blue Mountain's gritty Americana. One of the great live acts to catch in a small club. #NowSpinning
020
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 30/06/2025
Dave Matthews Band - Live in Chicago at the United Center 12.18.98 (2001) It's a Dave show. Guest appearances by the great Victor Wooten and even greater Maceo Parker. #NowSpinning
040
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 30/06/2025
U2 - Zooropa (1993) Achtung Baby made a left turn so that Zooropa could get proper weird. I'll readily acknowledge the accolades the former gets, but I've listened to Zooropa way more in the past 32 years. It's one of my three favorite U2 albums. 1/3
100
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 28/06/2025
Jackson Browne - I'm Alive (1993) This is one of the all time great break up albums. Jackson Browne made a career of confessional storytelling songs; this one plays like the five stages of grief in the process. It's defiant, sorrowful, painful, hopeful, a bit venomous, and ultimately accepting.
000
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 28/06/2025
Phish - 02.28.2003 Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale, NY (2003) Where they bust out "Destiny Unbound" after an 800 show absence. But the highlights here is the second set. The extended "Tweezer" doesn't get weird, but doesn't get boring. The "Bowie" is sharp, and the "Harry Hood" closer is beautiful.
110
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 27/06/2025
Van Morrison - The Best of Van Morrison (1990) From the garage proto-punk of "Gloria" and "Baby Please Don't Go," to the sultry "Moondance," to R&B tributes "Domino" and "Jackie Wilson Said," to gentle odes like "Warm Love" and "Dweller on the Threshold," Morrison's career runs the gamut.
100
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 26/06/2025
Phish - Slip, Stitch & Pass (1997) If anyone asks where to start with the daunting Phish catalog, I have two answers: the studio album Rift and this live release from a 1997 club gig in Germany. It plays like a perfect set to showcase nine facets of the band.
030
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 25/06/2025
Gin Blossoms - New Miserable Experience (1992) A sturdy, solid pop rock album that always surprises me how enjoyable it is from start to finish. It took a while for this to hit the charts, but once it did it became a smash. 1/2 #NowSpinning
120
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 25/06/2025
Pete Townshend - Deep End Live! (1986) A fantastic live record. Townshend puts new spin on his solo and Who material. David Gilmour lends a hand on guitar for much of the gig. The horn-laden finale of "Won't Get Fooled Again" is a perfect cap on things. 1/2 #NowSpinning
130
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 24/06/2025
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones - Ska-Core, the Devil, and More (1993) EP with their alternative hit "Someday I Suppose," some hard core covers, and a fantastic take on Bob Marley's "Simmer Down." #NowSpinning
020
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 23/06/2025
Steve Miller Band - Greatest Hits 1974-78 (1978) A ubiquitous album that's sold 15 million copies in the US. Seven of these songs are still in heavy rotation on classic rock radio. Super catchy stuff throughout. Note: I don't trust anyone that doesn't do the 👏👏👏👏👏 in "Take the Money and Run."
000
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 23/06/2025
Miles Davis - The Complete Birth of the Cool (1998) A lynchpin of 20th century music from sessions in 1949-1950. Early in his career, Miles helps to steer music in a new direction. His nonets here calm the frentic tempos of bebop into something new. 1/3
110
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 22/06/2025
Emmylou Harris / Linda Ronstadt / Dolly Parton - Trio II (1999) Three legendary voices follow up an 80s collaboration. Coincidentally another legendary voice, Alison Krauss, is in the sessions...on fiddle. #NowSpinning
010
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 21/06/2025
The Police - Outlandos d'Amour (1978) The band's debut has four radio-ready hits in "Can't Stand Losing You," "So Lonely," "Next to You" and the song that blew them up worldwide "Roxanne." Tremendously assured, catchy, and inventive post-punk stuff that set the stage for even bigger things to come.
100
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 21/06/2025
The Police - Zenyatta Mondatta (1980) Not sure where the case is for this one. In any case, I'm going to fawn over The Police when we encounter them. They were probably the first proper band I was obsessed with before I was 10 years old. Their five album run is impeccable. 1/3
100
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 21/06/2025
Television - Television (1992) Interesting comeback for Tom Verlaine's outfit. Cryptic lyrics paired with fairly melodic guitar noise. I gravitate to the slinky slide of "Beauty Trip" here, but otherwise nothing here rises to their late 70's Marquee Moon. #NowSpinning
040
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
REM - Out of Time (1991) A big deal release. I know I bought it the day it hit stores. So I listened so many times trying to convince my ears of its greatness, yet it never strikes the chords that other REM albums do. 1/2 #NowSpinning
150
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
Sleater-Kinney - The Hot Rock (1999) Maybe my favorite S-K album. The weaving guitars, lyrical interplay, and insistent beats are still there from Dig Me Out, but The Hot Rock somehow feels more, I don't know, intimate? Maybe that's not the right word. In any case, I return to this one a lot. 1/2
110
Music from the Basement @ouroldcds.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
Brooks & Dunn - Borderline (1996) Kicking off with the still-in-radio-rotation "My Maria," Borderline sounds like a roadside honky tonk. Line dancing stompers, slow dances, and tear in your tequila weepers abound. #NowSpinning
010