July's Mix CD

I've been pretty good this year about making a mix CD every month (which I mostly listen to in the car). I was a few days late for July, but here's the list -

1. Direct Hit - Art Brut
A great song for summer. Art Brut manages to completely avoid the sophmore slump with "It's a Bit Complicated"

2. Come Back (Light Therapy) - Josh Rouse
An older one that has been on my mind recently. Definitely not a summer song. May show up again on a winter compilation.

3. Could've Been Anyone - Aimee Mann
"Whatever" had been the missing piece in my Aimee Mann collection (well...that and the live album, and I don't have any Til Tuesday stuff). Definitely not her best and I had a hard time picking a song to put on the mix, but this one's pretty good.

4. Fairground - Graham Parker
Another song I've had around awhile, but I never really paid much attention to this album. I'm always into it when a GP song comes up on shuffle though, and I particularly liked this one when it came up the other day.

5. Shame - The Avett Brothers
This is a great album and leaves the feeling that the best from this band is yet to come.

6. Love That Boy - The Innocence Mission
I've been listening to this band since high school, and they're still incredibly under appreciated. This album is the best of the last few they put out.

7. Wrecking Force - Voxtrot
A band I discovered through this year's Pitchfork Festival. They've got the hooks. Lots of hooks. Weren't terribly convincing live....but on album...did I mention the hooks?

8. Song For Fay - Caroline Herring
This is on a compilation CD just out on Bloodshot Records - A Tribute to Larry Brown. I have no idea who Larry Brown is, or who Caroline Herring is, or who Fay is, but man I like this song.

9. God's Away on Business - Tom Waits
Another older one I've had around but never noticed till it recently came up on shuffle. This song has everything I love about Tom Waits - gritty growly vocals, odd rhythmns and instruments, and dark humor.

10. You Are My Face - Wilco
One of a number of stand-out tracks from their latest.

11. All Grown Up - Gore Gore Girls
Another new one from Bloodshot Records. A cover of a Crystals song (or at least a song they recorded). It's all irony here, but I think deep down it was all irony when it was originally recorded too. Now if someone would just cover the Crystals gem "He Hit Me (and it Felt Like a Kiss).

12. The Transfiguration - Sufjan Stevens
It's been very hard for me to get into Sufjan's back catalog having had Illinois as my introduction. Nothing can compare. I can't put my finger on why I like this song, but I do.

13. Rag and Bone - The White Stripes
One of the few songs from "Icky Thump" that I really like. Everything else just sounds too Led Zeppelin to me.

14. The Sun Also Sets - Ryan Adams
It's already August and Ryan Adams has only released one album this year, and it's superb. Right up there with Cold Roses and Jacksonville City Nights. Sad too...especially this song.

15. Little Triggers - Elvis Costello
I'd been swearing for a long time to pick up some of Elvis' early albums, and finally started myself down that path with "This Year's Model". I'd never heard this song before, but can't get enough of it.

16. Trouble - Voxtrot

17. If the Brakeman Turns My Way - Bright Eyes
I had a hard time with this song at first, but eventually the chorus completely won me over. I'm a sucker for the background "movin' out" vocals on this one (Jim James I think?).

18. The Mesopotamians - They Might Be Giants
Good old fashioned TMBG fun. Who can resist?