Idolator: the wire

Andrew WK: Man Of Many Words (About Records, Fellatio, And Long Island Guitar Heroines)

Jess Harvell — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 13:00:45 EST

Guys, not to get all hard-partying fanboy on you, but (OMG!!!1!) did you know that this month The Wire asked world's-greatest-human Andrew WK to sit down for their "Invisible Jukebox," the long-running feature where interviewer plays interviewee a bunch of records? And did you know that the magazine's Web site now features the unedited, nine-page transcript of said "Jukebox" interview with noise bro Mr. Marc Masters? (I did not. Until now.)

A thoughtful Mr. Wilkes-Krier offers his take on acts ranging from the Butthole Surfers to Lee "Scratch" Perry to Wolf Eyes, peppering his on-the-spot rock criticism with many personal revelations, including how jealously over his inability to self-pleasure in the name of art spurred his development as a popular musician: "[It] was some 7-inch with a photograph on the cover where he had positioned himself so that he could give himself oral sex. And it was real! It made a certain taste come in the back of my throat, no pun intended actually (laughter). But it was disturbing and very inspiring simultaneously." [The Wire]

(Sorta) Leak Of The Day: Wire Fever Sets In

dangibs — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 14:30:00 EST

ARTIST: Various Artists
TITLE: Beyond Hamsterdam: Baltimore Tracks From The Wire
RELEASE DATE: Jan. 8, 2008
WEB DEBUT: A while ago, I imagine, but I'm slow.

SEVERAL-LISTEN VERDICT: If there's anything the Internet could probably use less of, outside of Britney news, it's ecstatic commentary about The Wire, with the first episode of the fifth and final season airing this Sunday night. Although I share the opinion that the show is the best currently on the air—not much of a competition, I realize—it's easy to get sick of the very idea of it after seeing every blogger go on and on about its greatness. So, apologies to you, tired-of-The Wire readers, but the Baltimore Club-centric of the two recent soundtrack releases for the show is great. Of course, this post rightfully belongs to Idolator contributor GovernmentNames, since I probably have no business spouting off about Baltimore Club, but it's enjoyable even for a genre dilettante, to think of a compilation featuring Rod Lee and DJ Technics to be available at Borders locations nationwide, especially one with a well-chosen tracklist that represents both the show and the city's music scene well.

Beyond Hamsterdam [HBO]

"The Wire" Shares A Laugh With Robert Wyatt

jharv — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 09:30:12 EST

Brit experimental institution The Wire has just dropped its weighty year-end issue, which features Brit experimental (pop) institution Robert Wyatt at No. 1 on its list of the top 50 albums of 2007. As for the rest of the mag's rundown, it may prominently big up LCD Soundsystem and M.I.A., but hey, it's also got saxophone records that you can barely hear!

THE GOOD: The Wire is always reliable for a dose of hair-straightening hairshirt noise, serious sound art, and/or free improv. Like Sightings' brutalist Through at no. 37, Throbbing Gristle's unexpectedly excellent reunion record at No. 32, or the ramshackle brilliance of drummer Chris Corsano and guitarist Mick Flower's duo LP at No. 27.
THE BAD: Rough and tough experimentalists beware: bloggers and message board denizens are already grumbling that The Wire's Top 10 features many of the same records that appeared on all sorts of square lists this year. On the other hand, those who feel the magazine has lost the connection to (avant) pop music that marked its '90s heyday may find this development heartening.
THE WHAAAA? In Rainbows? Even down at No. 34? You're The Wire! You don't have to play these mainstream reindeer games!

01 Robert Wyatt - Comicopera (Domino)
02 Burial - Untrue (Hyperdub)
03 Panda Bear - Person Pitch (Paw Tracks)
04 OM - Pilgrimage (Southern Lord)
05 LCD Soundsystem - Sound Of Silver (DFA/EMI)
06 Von Südenfed - Tromatic Reflexxions (Domino)
07 Pram - The Moving Frontier (Domino)
08 MIA - Kala (XL)
09 Battles - Mirrored (Warp)
10 Ricardo Villalobos - Fabric 36 (Fabric)
11 Grinderman - Grinderman (Mute)
12 Kassin+2 - Futurismo (Luaka Bop)
13 Matthew Dear - Asa Breed (Ghostly)
14 Strategy - Future Rock (Kranky)
15 Laub - Deinetwegen (AGF Producktion)
16 Björk - Volta (One Little Indian)
17 Pole - Steingarten (~scape)
18 Harmonia - Live 1974 (Grönland)
19 John Butcher - The Geometry Of Sentiment (Emanem)
20 Akio Suzuki - K7 Box (ALM)
21 Deerhunter - Cryptograms (Kranky)
22 Lil' Wayne - Da Drought 3 (Mixtape) (No Label)
23 Peter Evans Quartet - Peter Evans Quartet (Firehouse 12)
24 James Blackshaw - The Cloud Of Unknowing (Tompkins Square)
25 Kemialliset Ystävät - Kemialliset Ystävät (Fonal)
26 Pandit Pran Nath - Raga Cycle (SRI Moonshine)
27 Flower-Corsano Duo - The Radiant Mirror (Textile)
28 Electrelane - No Shouts, No Calls (Too Pure)
29 Zeitkratzer & Lou Reed - Metal Machine Music (Asphodel)
30 Gudrun Gut - I Put A Record On (Monika Enterprise)
31 Marnie Stern - In Advance Of The Broken Arm (Kill Rock Stars)
32 Throbbing Gristle - Part Two: The Endless Not (Mute)
33 Rhys Chatham - The Crimson Grail (Table Of The Elements)
34 Radiohead - In Rainbows (www.inrainbows.com/XL)
35 The Focus Group - We Are All Pan's People (Ghost Box)
36 The Terminals - Last Days Of The Sun (Last Visible Dog)
37 Sightings - Through The Panama (Load)
38 Anthony Braxton - 9 Compositions Iridium 2006 (Firehouse 12)
39 Steve Jansen - Slope (Samadhisound)
40 Haswell & Hecker - Blackest Ever Black (Warner Classics)
41 Colleen - Les Ondes Silencieuses (Leaf)
42 Dial - 168K (Cede)
43 Wooden Shjips - Wooden Shjips (Holy Mountain)
44 fORCH - Spin Networks (PSI)
45 PJ Harvey - White Chalk (Island)
46 Hanne Hukkelberg - Rykestrasse 68 (Nettwerk)
47 Susan Howe & David Grubbs - Souls Of The Labadie Tract (Blue Chopsticks)
48 Lichens - Omns (Kranky)
49 Low - Drums And Guns (Sub Pop)
50 Frank Bretschneider - Rhythm (Raster-Norton)

Year-End Critics' Polls '07 [ILX]

Bruce Springsteen Works 'Magic' With Grammy Deadlines

mjohnston — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 08:48:29 EDT

Bruce Springsteen's Magic has an official release date of Oct. 2, but the vinyl version of the album is now in stores, which one can either see as a tribute to the format (a la Pearl Jam's week-early vinyl release of Vs. back in the day) or a sneaky way for the album to get Grammy consideration (because the album is available before Sept. 30, it'll be eligible for the 2007 edition of the awards). Either way, I'm quite curious to see what sort of numbers Magic will put up on next week's SoundScan chart—the Times piece on Magic's vinyl release says that copies of the album are available at the indie store Amoeba, but will superstores like Best Buy and Wal-Mart clear shelf space for the album? And what will those numbers say about Springsteen's fanbase, and where—or whether—its members are buying records these days?

Springsteen's 'Magic' out today in vinyl [LAT]

Tapping The Music Of "The Wire": We Now Have Paul Weller On The Line

Brian Raftery — Tue, 12 Dec 2006 08:42:47 EST

Thanks to everyone who listened when we requested an MP3 of Paul Weller's take on "I Walk On Gilded Splinters," the Dr. John number that closed the season-four finale of The Wire. Speaking of which, we have a half-dozen or so questions about what's going to happen next: After spotting DuQuan on the corner, will Prez stay with teaching, or will he again try to police the streets? How will Marlo muscle the city if Chris and Snoop get locked up (assuming, of course, that Chris and Snoop don't snitch on Marlo)? And considering that David Simon has created one of the best television shows on the air—a show that provokes empathy, outrage, and joy—will HBO just ignore the low ratings and re-up The Wire for the rest of the decade?

~~Paul Weller - I Walk On Gilded Splinters~~ [MP3, link expired]

Idolator Request Line: Please Help Us Tap "The Wire" One Last Time

Brian Raftery — Mon, 11 Dec 2006 10:10:08 EST

Last night's season finale of The Wire so harrowing and heartbreaking, it would be an insult to even try to encapsulate it in a 100-word blog post. But we would like to post the episode's closing number, a cover of "I Walk On Gilded Splinters" performed by Paul Weller (not pictured). If you have a DRM-free high-quality MP3 to share, please send it to tips@idolator.com, and you'll get a comment invite.

As Heard On TV: Anthony Hamilton Listens In On "The Wire"

Brian Raftery — Mon, 27 Nov 2006 11:55:42 EST

Our meager collection of regular readers know that we'll make any excuse to mention HBO's The Wire, a.k.a. The Greatest Show In The World, And Possibly The Most Amazing Thing To Happen In Popular Culture In Twenty Years (Except For Some Really Good Books). Anyway, last night featured a brief but memorable fast-food-joint back-and-forth between MccNulty and one of the corner's regulars, scored by Anthony Hamilton's fantastic 2003 slow jam "Comin' From Where I'm From." For anyone who wants to re-enact that scene—or who needs an excuse to investigate Hamilton's overlooked oeuvre further—we've included an MP3 of "Comin'."

~~Anthony Hamilton - Comin' From Where I'm From~~ [MP3, link expired]

Listening To "The Wire": This Post Could Someday Save Your Life

Brian Raftery — Mon, 06 Nov 2006 11:48:08 EST

If you missed last night's episode of The Wire—and you really shouldn't have, as it's generally the best 58 minutes of television all week—you missed a well-played shout-out to the Baltimore club scene: In order to smoke out a New York dealer who's invaded their turf, two for-hire killers wander the street and ask people if they've heard of Young Leek's club favorite "Jiggle It"—their logic being that, as one character notes, "they don't listen to that shit up in New York." The first guy they find who doesn't know the track must be from the Big Apple, and therefore, must get popped.

We don't want this to happen to you, so in a public service to our readers, we present Leek's breakthrough track. If anyone asks you about it, for God's sake, recite the lyrics by heart! You may even want to jiggle it while singing, just for extra emphasis.

~~Young Leek - Jiggle It~~ [MP3, link expired]
Young Leek [MySpace]