Mobtown Shank

RadioShank Special: Vaganza

by Benn Ray

Years ago (late '80s/early '90s), there was an awesome Jersey band called Skunk, made up of, among others, Matt Sweeney and Matt Quigley. They are only a memory now as their music is criminally unavailable digitally, and my cassette recordings of their records (Last American Virgin and Laid) have unfortunately deteriorated.

If I know my history correctly, Sweeney went on to form the acclaimed Chavez (and later play with Bonnie Prince Billy, among others).

Quigley went on to form Vaganza. Vaganza's sound is quite different from Skunk's, but still fun.

Here is Vaganza's self-titled record, plus some other demos.

1. She's Crazy [mp3]
2. Everyday [mp3]
3. Wedding Day [mp3]
4. Sweet Sensation [mp3]
5. Start Liking Yourself [mp3]
6. Mama's Playing Away [mp3]
7. Silly Sally [mp3]
8. Margherita [mp3]
9. Rosa Maria [mp3]
10. Too Darn Good [mp3]
11. Rock N' Roll Apocalypse [mp3]

"Are You Willing to Die for Rock N' Roll" Demo:
1. All I Want for Her [mp3]
2. Hang On [mp3]
3. Just A Fool [mp3]
4. Sold My Soul [mp3]

From 1998 Demos:
5. Forgive Me for Saying I Love You [mp3]
6. The Night [mp3]
7. Beautiful Girls [mp3]

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PLEASE NOTE: The MP3s listed here will not be available indefinitely. So if a file is missing, it's most likely because the source hosting the file has removed it.
Bands - email mp3 links here.

RadioShank MP3s: Lexie Mountain Boys, The Melvins, Oakley Hall...

LEXIE MOUNTAIN BOYS
myspace
[mp3] Sweet Potato Sugar Tot
From the new album, Sacred Vacation.

TILLY AND THE WALL
myspace
[mp3] Pot Kettle Black

SLOAN
myspace
I'm Not a Kid Anymore

APOLLO SUNSHINE
myspace
[mp3] 666: The Coming Of The New World Government

SHEARWATER
myspace
[mp3] Leviathan Bound
Roxy Music, anyone?

LADYTRON
myspace
[mp3] Black Cat

WE WERE THE STATES
myspace
[mp3] Up Your Sleeve
[mp3] Till Morning Comes

OAKLEY HALL
myspace
[mp3] Lazy Susan
[mp3] Living in Sin in the USA
[mp3] Landlord
[mp3] Eyes, Lock & Steel

THE MELVINS
myspace
[mp3] Nude with Boots
From their new, Nude With Boots (due out July 8).

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PLEASE NOTE: The MP3s listed here will not be available indefinitely. So if a file is missing, it's most likely because the source hosting the file has removed it.
Bands - email mp3 links here.

RadioShank Special: Ponytail's Ice Cream Social

by Benn Ray

I don't know if you are as excited for the new Ponytail record as I am, but you should be. The more I hear, the more I can't wait. It's my most anticipated release of the summer.

Paper Thin Walls is hosting a listening part where you can stream the whole new album. And it is freakin' great. Play. It. Loud.

Ponytail's Ice Cream Spiritual is due out June 17.

I'm geeking out, aren't I?

RadioShank Special: The Capstan Shafts MP3s

So it's always fun when Yuri of Baby Aspirin and Snowmen stops by Atomic Books. We get to chat about indie comix and indie rock. Earlier this week, we were talking about lo-fi indie rock. He was telling me his band Snowmen was doing a lo-fi sort of thing, and I was telling him I was a fan of bands like Guided By Voices, Pavement, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Sebadoh, The Mountain Goats - you know, bands who have all done the lo-fi thing at some point.

He said, "You have to check out The Capstan Shafts,then."

So I did. And now you can too. If you like lo-fi, GBV, ect., you'll like Dean Wells' (AKA Capstan Shafts) music.

THE CAPSTAN SHAFTS
myspace

[mp3] Half a Bottle and a Full Moon
[mp3] Trickier the Wisdom

[mp3] Bluejean V. Debs
[mp3] The Trilateralist Told You Not To
[mp3] The Day You Called Me Pretty
[mp3] Chandelier of Bad Idea

[mp3] Save My Down For A Sadder Day
[mp3] Old Skull, New Mexico

HALALUAH MOANCOAXERS! EP
front cover [.jpg]
[mp3] Love Pundits Bright Future
[mp3] Lessthreatening Day
[mp3] Petals On An Austin Rose
[mp3] Personals Surfer
[mp3] Sarasota Vs. The Concrete Poets
[mp3] The Strategy Of Daylight
[mp3] The Giddy Tramps Marching Orders
[mp3] Your Hipper Default Settings

RadioShank MP3s: Matmos, The Do, Portishead, Dylan...

MATMOS
myspace
[mp3] Rainbow Flag
From the new album, Supreme Ballroom, from Baltimore's Matmos.

PORTISHEAD
myspace
[mp3] We Carry On

THE DO
myspace
[mp3] Stay (Just A Little Bit More)
On I Guess I'm Floating.

BOB DYLAN
[mp3] Brownsville Girl
One of my favorite Dylan songs from the '80s - a sprawling epic of a tune.
On An Aquarium Drunkard.

[mp3] WKRP IN CINCINNATI THEME
Does this sound different from how you remember it too?
On An Aquarium Drunkard.

SHEARWATER
myspace
[mp3] Rooks
[mp3] Red Sea, Black Sea

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PLEASE NOTE: The MP3s listed here will not be available indefinitely. So if a file is missing, it's most likely because the source hosting the file has removed it.
Bands - email mp3 links here.

RadioShank MP3s: Ponytail, Caleb Stine, Blood On The Wall...

PONYTAIL
myspace
[mp3] Celebrate the Body Electric (It Came from an Angel)
From their upcoming album, ICE CREAM SPIRITUAL.

CALEB STINE & THE BRAKEMEN
myspace
[mp3] From The Tongues Of Kings
From the new album, I'LL HEAD WEST AGAIN.

WOLF PARADE
myspace
[mp3] Language City
Found on Gorilla vs. Bear.

BLOOD ON THE WALL
myspace
[mp3] Hibernation
[mp3] Lightning Song
Thanks to Uri from Baby Aspirin for telling me to check out BotW.

THE MOHAWK LODGE
myspace
[mp3] Heart Of Lovers
From Sixeyes.

KING KAHN & THE SHRINES
myspace
[mp3] Torture
[mp3] Welfare Bread
 
ROBERT POLLARD
myspace
[mp3] Gratification To Concrete

BON IVER
myspace
[mp3] Blindsided
Don't know why, but for the longest time I thought Bon Iver was a metal singer. Actually I do know why. Something about his name.
From Said The Gramophone.

THE ALLIGATORS
myspace
[mp3] I'm Dungeons You're Dragons
Found on Skatterbrain.

THE REPLACEMENTS
[mp3] Raised In The City (demo)
[mp3] Hey Good Lookin’ (outtake)
[mp3] Johnny Fast (outtake — rough mix)
[mp3] Temptation Eyes (outtake)

DENNIS WILSON
[mp3] Moonlight (bootleg version)
[mp3] It’s Not Too Late (bootleg version)
[mp3] Companion (bootleg version)
[mp3] Schoolgirl (bootleg version)
[mp3] (I Found Myself in a) Wild Situation (bootleg version)
[mp3] Baby Blue Eyes (bootleg version)
[mp3] Love Surrounds Me (bootleg version)
June will see the reissue of Dennis Wilson's yacht rock classic, PACIFIC OCEAN BLUE. It will include tracks from his "lost masterpiece" (yes, just like his brother Brian and SMILE, Dennis also had a lost masterpiece) BAMBU (previously BAMBOO). These tracks will be cleaned up and appear there.
Found on Aquarium Drunkard.

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PLEASE NOTE: The MP3s listed here will not be available indefinitely. So if a file is missing, it's most likely because the source hosting the file has removed it.
Bands - email mp3 links here.

RadioShank: Voices From The People's Republic Of Maryland?

So Caleb Stine and Aaron Henkin took a road trip around Maryland to ask the folks outside of the city what they think of America, what songs are important to them, etc. for this past week's episode of WYPR's The Signal.

Aaron and Caleb's approach is very open, friendly and completely non-judgmental. The perspectives they reveal are fascinating, if not at times disappointing and frightening.

Most seem to agree America is on the wrong track. Most seem concerned about the economy. They get that their surroundings are being over-developed. They get that everything is more expensive, they're working harder, and making less money.

But the main problem they see? Immigration and "others".

The most important thing? God.

Their taste in music? Sadly, about what you'd expect. Ha.

A very interesting glimpse into the "heartland" of Maryland, especially for people like me (and yes, I originally came from the Maryland "Heartland") who had hoped that the failures of the Bush Administration would have illustrated to people the failures of Republicanism and Conservative "thought". They haven't. Folks get that Bush is a failure, but that's about as far as they take it. In a way, it makes me feel a little disappointed in my fellow Maryland residents. I want to holler, "C'mon, people. Spend a minute and think about this shit. When are you gonna figure out that you're being had?"

Sigh...

Anyway, kudos Caleb & Aaron. Great show!

[mp3] An American Radio Story, Part 1

[mp3] An American Radio Story, Part 2

WFMU Adds Bmore Bands To Free Music Archive

link submitted by Lisa Harbin

WFMU is working on adding Baltimore bands to their Free Music Archive.

The result is a treasure trove of Baltimore-band mp3s.

Includes mp3s from Dan Deacon, Double Dagger, Human Host, Lexie Mountain Boys, LO MOdA, Nautical Almanac, Ponytail, Wzt Hearts, and lots more.

They're looking for suggestions, so be sure to post a comment on their blog or drop them line.

RadioShank MP3s: Lexie Mt. Boys, Tilly & The Wall, Les Savy Fav...

THE LEXIE MOUNTAIN BOYS
myspace
[mp3] Sweet Potato Sugar Tot
Baltimore's Lexie Mountain Boys!

DARSOMBRA
myspace
[download] Lamentings/Auguries
Baltimore's Darsombra.

TILLY AND THE WALL
myspace
[mp3] Cacophony
From the upcoming album.

SLOAN
myspace
[download] Witch's Wand
[mp3] I'm Not a Kid Anymore (found on Fluxblog)
[mp3] Cheap Champagne (found on Said The Gramophone)

GOLDFRAPP
myspace
[mp3] Cologne Cerrone Houdini

GRANDADDY
myspace
[mp3] A.M. 180 (found on I Guess I'm Floating)

IMPOSSIBLE SHAPES
myspace
[mp3] Hey

LES SAVY FAV
myspace
Patty Lee [mp3]

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PLEASE NOTE: The MP3s listed here will not be available indefinitely. So if a file is missing, it's most likely because the source hosting the file has removed it.
Bands - email mp3 links here.

RadioShank MP3s: Thank You, Degenerettes, Spoon, Vampire Weekend...

SPOON
myspace
[mp3] Don't You Evah (Ted Leo's I Want It Hotter Remix)
Ted Leo remixes Spoon.

THANK YOU
myspace
Empty Legs
Write up & download of a new song from the eagerly anticipated new record from Baltimore's Thank You - Terrible Two.

THE DEGENERETTES
myspace
[mp3] Female Trouble

SUN KIL MOON
myspace
[mp3] Heron Blue

ELF POWER
myspace
[mp3] Paralyzed
[mp3] Spiral Stairs
Who would win in a band fight, Elf Power or Snow Fairies?

VAMPIRE WEEKEND
myspace
[mp3] Oxford Comma

OF MONTREAL
myspace
[mp3] Feminine Effects

WOLF PARADE
myspace
[mp3] Call It A Ritual
Found on Stereogum.

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PLEASE NOTE: The MP3s listed here will not be available indefinitely. So if a file is missing, it's most likely because the source hosting the file has removed it.
Bands - email mp3 links here.