Tag: Vinyl

Vol. I & Vol. II

I finally acquired these two beauties…

Photo by me, art design by Fabien Peterson (Vol.I) and Arielle Corbeau (Vol. II)

Like many other fans of this band, I’ve been waiting for MONTHS to get my hot little hands on these two beauties. I’ve seen many pictures of these records on my social media feeds, and it makes me happy that we all have our little grails. But what of the actual objects? Were they worth the wait?

It’s worth noting that both albums have been available to us online. We have been able to turn on the interwaves and find all 12 of these tracks (6 per disc, 3 per side) any time we wanted, for the price of whatever we’re paying for our internet hookup anyway. Then we can stream them for “free,” meaning you might have to deal with ads or perhaps a subscription price. Youtube also has many audience recordings of their current ongoing tour, so any of these tracks that they’ve brought to the stage, you can most likely see a shaky hand-held cam video of with muddy-ass sound as an added bonus.

And yeah, I’ve done that a bunch. Short of turning this exercise into a defense of buying physical media in an age when all of this stuff is RIGHT THERE IN FRONT OF YOU ON THE CENTRAL SCRUTINIZER, I can only tell you that I’m happy to have these particular objects in my posession, in the context intended by the makers of this music. YMMV.

I can also tell you that I have seen these 2 albums listed on eBay for a grand.

Vol. I includes two songs titled after foods the band has been known to throw into the crowd at shows. In each case, I find them to be the weaker tunes on the album. Tohogd (hot dog) sounds like an early effort, something the brothers made when figuring out how to do this act. Sahardnieh (sardines) sounds a bit more fully realized, but sits between two tracks I find more interesting and more complete. Side one has what I think is the best song on the record — Sherpa — but overall, side two is the stronger set. By overreaching extension, I derive the impression that this band has far more to offer us than its baser, more novety-ish impulses.

But then, I feel a little presumptuous in trying to separate out intentions I’m not privy to. And I will remind that the first thing that made me perk up and listen was their stage presentation — the very gimmickiness that I set at the base of their approach. Still, between Ababa Hotel and Sahardnieh, I’m absolutely going to point you to the former as a fine demonstration of what this band can do, and Sahardnieh as a slightly lesser, but still vital representation of what the band identity.

Side 1 of Vol. II is the high point of their recorded work, in my opinion. It’s like a combination of Eno and “Pleasant Valley Sunday” with a bit of krautrock flavor mixed in. It’s also very precise and funky af. Again, and not for the last time… AdP are very good players. These songs are structured brilliantly, the humor is fully present. As I listen through these three songs — “Fabienk,” “Mata Zyklek” (My favorite Angine de Poitrine song,) and “Sarniezz” — I feel a thrill at brilliant new music that I haven’t felt in a good long while. Each new track makes me want to dance, makes me smile, makes me glad I’m here to experience this young band who have found new ways to bring out these responses in me.

And the music holds up without the costumes. That may be the best thing that comes from listening to the vinyl. Without the extra stimulus of those whacked-out (but very cleverly designed) outfits, the experience is just the players — Khn and Klek — and the aural environment they create. Khn uses the microtonality of his instrument(s) in an absolutely tasteful way. The “extra” notes are never just extra — they are an augmentation, an extension of the possibilities available.

One of the most impressive passages here, the end of the first section of “Utzp,” the side 2 opener, is a layering of harmonies, each new layer incorporating microtonality as each new part comes in and keeping things consonant and propulsive as Khn surprises us each time things come around again.

And side 2 of this album doesn’t disappoint, even though I think they rightly chose side 1 as the bulk of that KEXP live set that everybody saw (myself included) and turned them into the most exciting thing in rock music in 2026. The ideas keep flowing, the execution is in all cases flawless and fun.

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Zeitgeist 5/26/26

The day after Memorial Day, I am alive and so are you

random image meant to intrigue you with its randomness. Photo by me.

Y’know, I sure do like good coffee. I’m sitting here slurping on my second cup, and my mind is full of yum. Many things give me yum. What gives you yum? I’d like to know. I find your opinions yummy.

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You know who has some really yummy opinions? Graham Platner.

Graham Platner on a boat. Photo from the Graham for Senate campaign.

I generally don’t provide full context for these things I reference, so I won’t here. You may know who he is, you may not. If you don’t, fire up your favorite search engine and learn. But I don’t think you’ll need to do that.

I keep watching videos of the man talking. I find that I already agree with most of what he says, but I also learn things. The fact that this street-level guy who would be my kids’ age if I had any kids (who weren’t felines) has been so dedicated to the well-being of this country, is so well-read, and is willing to go through the BS of a senatorial campaign in these greed-crazy times is absolutely admirable, especially since he’s doing it based on small-dollar donations and fighting against The Big Money. If I lived in Maine, I’d want to volunteer for his campaign. And if it turns out that Trumpo the Clown and his band of idiots put ICE or the National Guard or whatever between the citizens of Maine and their polling places, I hope that they will consider what Graham Platner would do in their place.

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It’s planting time here in climate zone 5b, and Karen has been hard at work growing seedlings in her office and in plastic jugs outside (winter sowing) and this week and upcoming weekend is when all the little planties will go into the ground. Then in a little while, we’ll have beautiful heirloom tomatoes and many other crunchy and yummy garden goodies. I’m very excited for the yield and glad to help out a bit with bringing the things to life. My window overlooks the little garden from the second floor, and on summer days, I will look down from here and watch her water and weed and do all of the various activities while I WFH. The warm months are my favorite.

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I bought a copy of the Rhino High Fidelity remastered copy of Nevermind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols. It comes in a glossy gatefold tip on jacket (yes, I’m aware — the original was neither glossy nor gatefold!) but this version is exciting to me. My old copy (which I stupidly got rid of at some point) was an original UK pressing that sounded about ten times better than the US pressing. I’ve heard that US pressing and it’s quite disappointing if you’re used to the much brighter and fuller-sounding original. This version brings the American song sequence up to *almost* the level of the yellow cover version, and it makes me happy that I can hear the thing close to the way it was originally meant to be heard. Producer Chris Thomas’s notes on the sessions, included here, are enlightening as well.

If you see a copy, grab it. Don’t let the idea of a slightly more expensive high-end remaster of a punk record seem foolish to you — believe me, it’s not! So, there’s another yum for you.

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Have a yummy week, OK?

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