Completely Conspicuous

Wed, 27 September 2023

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2004.

Show notes:

Phil's #5: Arcade Fire with a rousing debut about suburbia
Jay's #5: First album from Mission of Burma in 19 years kicks serious butt
Phil's #4: The last U2 album Phil enjoyed
Zebra once opened for their Zeppelin cover band
Jay's #4 and Phil's #3: Drive-By Truckers unleash another powerful concept album about the South
Phil's #2: Brian WIlson finally releases unreleased epic album Smile
The Beach Boys went from "America's Beatles" to an oldies joke band
Jay's #2: Another excellent album from Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
Jay's #1: Debut from the Hold Steady combines '70s riffs with indie rock
Phil's #1 and Jay's #3: Mark Lanegan with a world-weary masterpiece with a little help from his friends
Favorite songs: "Hit the City" (Phil), "Positive Jam" (Jay)

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple Podcasts. Subscribe and write a review!

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.

Direct download: CompCon_624_092723.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 6:00pm EDT

Tue, 19 September 2023

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2004.

Show notes:

In 2004, Jay became a father for the second time, was a diaper-changing machine
Phil got married, saw the Red Sox and Patriots become champions
Jay: Got an iPod, downloaded a ton of music
Pixies reunited, Phish broke up
Many bands take hiatuses
The tale of Mr. Jimmy
William Hung becomes famous
Phil's non-top 5s: Wilco, Black Keys, Beastie Boys, Patterson Hood, Umphrey's McGee, the Killers, Green Day, Twilight Singers, Eagles of Death Metal, PJ Harvey, Franz Ferdinand, TV On the Radio, Tragically Hip
Phil invents new words
Green Day rejuvenates itself
Jay's non-top 5s: The Walkmen, Death From Above 1979
To be continued

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple Podcasts. Subscribe and write a review!

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.

Direct download: CompCon_623_091923.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 7:28pm EDT

Tue, 12 September 2023

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2003.

Show notes:

Phil's #5: Raucous debut from NYC's Yeah Yeah Yeahs, featuring the electric Karen O
Jay's #5: Radiohead combined electronic and guitar-driven sounds
Radiohead albums kept leaking early on file-sharing networks
Phil's #4: The Shins hone their super catchy pop sound
Jay's #4: An indie rock gem from the Wrens that still awaits a follow-up
20 years of starts, stops, indecision and disagreements
Phil's #3: My Morning Jacket combined indie rock, Southern rock, folk and jam band sounds
MP3 blog bands abound
Jay's #3: Another kickass release from Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
Leo is one of the great unsung artists of our generation
Is Springsteen overrated?
Phil's #2: Drive-By Truckers add Jason Isbell and step up their game
Jay's #2: A departure for Sloan, but one jam-packed with great songs
The only Sloan album without an Andrew Scott song
Phil's #1: The White Stripes expand their sound and totally blow up
The Stripes made a lot of noise with minimal instrumentation
Jay's #1: Greg Dulli's Twilight Singers unleash a classic album as a tribute to late friend
Favorite songs: "The Hardest Button to Button" (Phil), "Teenage Wristband" (Jay)

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple Podcasts. Subscribe and write a review!

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.

Direct download: CompCon_622_091223.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 7:04pm EDT

Tue, 5 September 2023

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2003.

Show notes:

In 2003, Jay had a toddler and found out another kid was on the way
Started downloading a lot of music via blogs
Jay saw Pat DiNizio, Gord Downie, Radiohead, Guster
Phil got engaged, saw a lot of Red Sox games
Coed softball struggles
50 Cent had the #1 song of the year
A lot of number bands on the charts
What's the deal with Kid Rock?
Phil's non-top 5s: TV On the Radio, Warren Zevon, Jason Molina, Black Keys, Jet, Outkast, Ween, Lucinda Williams, Bowie
Jay's non-top 5s: Gord Downie, Electric Six, Dizzee Rascal, Stephen Malkmus, Zeppelin
To be continued

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple Podcasts. Subscribe and write a review!

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.

Direct download: CC_621_090523.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 8:22pm EDT