God Save Fu Manchu, Moriarty and Dracula Tuesday, November 11, 2003

Back at work two days. Thoroughly unpleasant. If Skunk Baxter is listening, I could use some space-based assistance about now...

Not much to say. Wiped out. The Kinks are not as good as I imagined they'd be: Another band best approached by anthology. Meanwhile, a friend at the office argued that the Minutemen's "Double Nickels on the Dime" is the best album of the 1980s. I tried to argue for some faves ("Rain Dogs," "The Nightfly," "Discipline") but I think those records, varied as they are, all are sort of staid: They don't necessarily sound fresh and funky on repeated listening.

"Rain Dogs" is a Hopper painting come to life, lots of rich characters and weird, homely sounds...but when it gets too familiar it's like riding the subway and having a drunk keep nodding off on you. "Nightfly" is so sleek and shiny it should have fins...but listen to it enough and the songs all feel about twenty minutes long. "Discipline" is fun and spiky and funky, a bunch of clever guys stretching out of their usual fields. But there are those endless instrumentals, and the lyrics just don't stand up on the rest of the tunes.

So what's the best album of the 80s? Maybe something Elvis, maybe something Go-Betweens. Or Talking Heads? Marshall Crenshaw?

Too close to call. Send your suggestions.

@ 8:55:00 PM,

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