In rotation

Yesterday I wrote about what I'm reading. Today, by request, I'm writing about what I'm listening to. Perhaps there's a theme developing this week.

-St. Vincent Actor

Multi-instrumentalist and singer Annie Clark performs under the name St. Vincent. Her recently released second album Actor continues her development as an eclectic artist who one might compare to Kate Bush or Feist. With interesting arrangements and Clark's prodigious guitar skills, file under eccentric pop.

Track: "Actor Out of Work"

-My Morning Jacket It Still Moves

Not a new album but one that, in less than a year, has become an all-time favorite. I called this up on the iPod while driving to the Reds game about a week ago and found myself entranced with the spacious, golden mix of classic rock and country. Listening to this on a sunny day on the road was practically a spiritual experience. I can't believe I was ignorant of this band for so long.

Track: "Mahgeetah"

-The Decemberists The Hazards of Love

The Decemberists make literate rock n' roll that, if I'm stereotyping, is catnip for English majors. This concept album, their most recent, probably isn't the best introduction to the band, if simply because its prog rock flourishes and heavier sounds aren't what most would associate with them. I can't say that I've followed the story threaded through the songs, but maybe it will make more sense when I see them in concert in two weeks.

Track: "The Rake's Song" (FYI, I do think it's fair warning that the last.fm entry describes the song's dark lyrics thusly: "A tale of young marriage, a sudden discontent spurred on by the joint deaths of a mother and newborn, leading to delightfully angry infanticide." Think of an Edward Gorey story put to song. Or not, if that puts you off.)

-Pixies discography

Somehow I had managed to own zero Pixies albums until a recent book store CD clearance sale lured me into buying three of their discs. (To salvage some credibility, I did have a compilation.) Alternative rock of the 1990s was practically built upon what they did.

Track: "Velouria"

-1980s pop

That same sale allowed me to indulge in purchasing Duran Duran and Tears for Fears compilations, which join an ABC greatest hits bought earlier this year. And for four bucks how could I turn down finally upgrading my cassette copy of No Jacket Required by Phil Collins? That album is loaded with hits, and I couldn't resist hearing "Don't Lose My Number" in CD clarity. If I had any of this stuff, it was on tapes long unplayed. As distant as this music may seem from everything else listed in this entry, I genuinely like this popular stuff too and not for nostalgic or kitsch reasons. But yes, it was my soundtrack while I mowed lawns as a kid.

Tracks: ABC "Be Near Me", Duran Duran "Union of the Snake", Tears for Fears "Head Over Heels"