I May Be Wrong, I’ll Pay for It (original) (raw)

Cracker, Bob’s Car – This 1995 fan club release was recently made available to the general public. I’d previously heard some of the songs on it, but not all. It’s largely a collection of stuff the band did in the early nineties with the German band F.S.K. “China” is an entertaining song. At the time David Lowery wrote it, his girlfriend was named Mary and lived on China Street in Richmond. David said the rest of the song was “very silly and nonsensical,” mostly about characters toward whom he’s comically insulting. There’s also a joke about the end of a verse not rhyming, which I guess is quite similar to one in Camper Van Beethoven’s “Take the Skinheads Bowling.” “Hans’ Lament” is an instrumental waltz named after Johnny Hickman’s son. There’s a slow demo of “Lonesome Johnny Blues.” I’ve seen a few people mention that they just don’t like Johnny’s songs at all, and while I’d definitely say David is the better songwriter, there are some of Hickman’s that I quite like. That particular song is pretty infectious, in a good way. “Sunday Train” is another one I like, and a different version of it is a B-side on the Low EP. David wrote it while riding trains in England, and it has a tongue-in-cheek religious theme. “River Euphrates” is a rock song with heavily referential lyrics. And there’s a hidden track, a fun version of “Euro-Trash Girl” with disco beats and yodeling.

Sparks, The Girl Is Crying in Her Latte – Beth got into Sparks two years ago, so I feel like I’m kind of tagging along on her fandom, although I do think I would have liked them if I’d come across them first. I’d heard of them, certainly, but didn’t really have any idea as to what they sounded like. We saw them live on Wednesday, and Beth is going to her fourth on this tour today. I’ve heard some of their albums without writing about them, but I figured I should do so with the newest one. “Veronica Lake” is about the actress having her hair cut to do a PSA for the war effort, because women working in factories kept getting their hair caught in the machinery. The song argues that she kind of lost her identity in the process. I notice that the woman on the album cover has Lake-like “peekaboo-y” hair. “Nothing Is as Good as They Say It Is” is a favorite of mine, very engaging. I like the keyboard part and vocals on “Escalator.” It’s kind of sparse and melancholy, about a guy with a crush on a woman who rides the escalator opposite him every day. “We Go Dancing” is about a dance party in North Korea with Kim Jong-Un as the DJ, with some amusing lyrics. The music is urgent, and sounds more Eastern European than Korean to me. “When You Leave” is directed at a guy everyone hates, pretty insulting, but tempered by how the unwanted guest insists on sticking around just to annoy people. “Take Me for a Ride” is a cheerful song about hijacking a car for a high-speed chase, which turns out to be a scenario an accountant and a teenager act out every week for a thrill. “It’s Sunny Today” includes a string section. “It Doesn’t Have to Be That Way” has kind of a sixties/Beatles feel, and is very pretty.

Ben Folds, What Matters Most – Ben’s first studio album in a long time is more on the quiet, sad side than some of his others, although he’s certainly worked in that style plenty in the past. I find his music harder to write about than that of some other artists, and it usually takes a few listens before it really grabs me, but there’s a lot that’s enjoyable here. “Clouds with Ellipses” is a pretty, emotional one. “Exhausting Lover” is an entertaining story about an affair with a woman the narrator is simultaneously annoyed by and attracted to. “Kristine from the 7th Grade” is about drifting apart from someone the singer used to know, but now finds he doesn’t have anything in common with anymore, as she’s gotten into right-wing conspiracy theories and such. “Back to Anonymous” has Ben talking about how he liked that people didn’t recognize him while he wore a mask during the pandemic. And one of the bonus tracks is a Roger Miller cover.

Jenny Lewis, Joy’All – Jenny’s latest release is largely about relationships, and has a generally laid-back, easy-going kind of sound. Some of the relationships mentioned aren’t good ones, but it still has a pretty positive vibe overall. “Puppy and a Truck” is about finding pleasure in small things after some bad relationships. I like the percussion on it. “Giddy-Up” has a high vocal. “Cherry Baby” has good drums. “Love Feel” has a country sound and references to several country musicians, and the sort of poetic style that uses lists rather than complete sentences: “Thunder and pouring rain, sugar in the gas tank, fire and lightning, PCP and Mary Jane.” I wonder if there’s a name for that.

Janelle Monae, The Age of Pleasure – This came out on the same day as Lewis’ album, and there’s kind of a similar vibe to both of them, more relaxed and positive than a lot of their other work. The titles even reflect that. As much as I liked the complicated science fiction narratives to Monae’s early albums, her music is still good even without that. The songs and the album as a whole are generally on the short side. And the lyrics are often overtly sexual. There are horns and woodwinds on some of the songs. It starts out with the relaxed “Float.” The chorus on the self-celebratory rap “Haute” is pretty addictive. Grace Jones does the spoken French on “Ooh La La.” The poppy “Lipstick Lover” is the first single, and has a pretty sexy video. “Only Have Eyes 42” has a good beat and jazzy piano, and plays on the Flamingos’ “I Only Have Eyes for You.”

The Minus 5, Calling Cortez – This album is a tribute to Neil Young, including both covers of his songs and originals about him. I’m not really that familiar with Neil’s music, but I did listen to what they covered on this record. In general, the cover versions are rather faster and busier than Neil’s rougher, simpler originals. I like the piano part on “World Went Worse,” one of the ones Scott McCaughey wrote.