That special feeling...
Not last Sunday, but the one before, there was an interesting piece in the New York Times Arts section about reunited bands and how the live concert is now a big deal, whereas the release of an album is no longer a monumental event. This is, for the most part true, and i think it's really sad. i used to look forward to buying an album on the day it came out, especially if it was an album by a band i really loved. i don't really get it - to me, paying 15 bucks for the new Bright Eyes on the day it arrives in all it's freshly packaged glory is always going to be way more exciting than paying $150 to see the Police play songs they wrote more than 20 years ago. Maybe that's because i'm younger, but i don't get it and i don't think i ever will. If i want a band to reunite, it's because i want them to make new music, and i want it to be really good (Mission of Burma, thank you). This got me thinking, so i went through my iTunes and came up with a list of albums i bought the day they came out. It's long, and i won't bore you with all the details, but i will give some highlights. A lot of it is embarrassing emo stuff, like Blink-182's self-titled album (which i still like), but let's have a look:
Islands' "Return to the Sea" and Wolf Parade's "Apologies to the Queen Mary" are examples of albums i bought without ever having heard the band - though i was a devout Unicorns lover in my pre-Islands days. The list goes back to Weezer's "Pinkerton," still probably my favorite album of all time. The month of April 1999 was particularly good as it brought me Fountains of Wayne's "Utopia Parkway," the Rentals' "Seven More Minutes" and Ben Folds Five's "Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner" all as day-of purchases at the old Record Express in West Hartford (RIP). Lots of Saddle Creek stuff, from Rilo Kiley's "More Adventurous" to The Faint's "Wet From Birth" to the Good Life's "Album of the Year." Those are all bands i would still buy the day they came out. Some serious mistakes: Thursday's "A City By the Light Divided" and Jimmy Eat World's "Futures," two of the worst albums ever. But i did buy their previous albums on the day of release too, and i still enjoy those quite a bit. Who has the most day-of purchases in my album collection? Looks like Bright Eyes with 4 and Weezer (4) and followed up by the New Amsterdams (3) and Matt Sharp/The Rentals (3). Kind of interesting. What are some of your best or most embarrassing release day purchases?
Islands' "Return to the Sea" and Wolf Parade's "Apologies to the Queen Mary" are examples of albums i bought without ever having heard the band - though i was a devout Unicorns lover in my pre-Islands days. The list goes back to Weezer's "Pinkerton," still probably my favorite album of all time. The month of April 1999 was particularly good as it brought me Fountains of Wayne's "Utopia Parkway," the Rentals' "Seven More Minutes" and Ben Folds Five's "Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner" all as day-of purchases at the old Record Express in West Hartford (RIP). Lots of Saddle Creek stuff, from Rilo Kiley's "More Adventurous" to The Faint's "Wet From Birth" to the Good Life's "Album of the Year." Those are all bands i would still buy the day they came out. Some serious mistakes: Thursday's "A City By the Light Divided" and Jimmy Eat World's "Futures," two of the worst albums ever. But i did buy their previous albums on the day of release too, and i still enjoy those quite a bit. Who has the most day-of purchases in my album collection? Looks like Bright Eyes with 4 and Weezer (4) and followed up by the New Amsterdams (3) and Matt Sharp/The Rentals (3). Kind of interesting. What are some of your best or most embarrassing release day purchases?
posted by todd at 12:55
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