Completely Conspicuous 206: Hits of the Year

Part 1 of my conversation with special guest Jay Breitling as we look back at the best rock music of 2011. Listen to the episode below or download it directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

- Of new additions and beer

- Revisiting our beer discussion of episodes 133 and 134

- Trends in 2011: The return of the '90s

- Bands reunited, new bands echo '90s influences

- Imminent death of the CD?

- Tons of reissues for classic albums

- Expanded versions of relatively recent albums

- Breitling's #10 album: Los Campesinos

- Proggy elements added to band's sound

- Kumar's #10: Drive-By Truckers

- Uber-prolific band combines Southern rock and soul

- Breitling's #9: Soccer Mom

- Boston band echoes sound of bands like Sonic Youth

- Kumar's #9: J. Mascis

- Solo album turns down the jet engine roar

- Breitling's #8: Ringo Deathstarr

- Album was four years in the making

- Kumar's #8: Beastie Boys

- Sounds like classic Beasties

- Overblown non-controversy of the week: Questlove vs. Michele Bachmann

- Bonehead of the Week

Music:
Los Campesinos - Hello Sadness

Ringo Deathstarr - Imagine Hearts

Drive-By Truckers - Used to Be a Cop

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The show is sponsored by Budget, the country's premier car rental service with 900 locations. Go to Budget.com/CompCon and save 10% off any reservation or $30 off a weekly rental.

The Los Campesinos song is on the album Hello Sadness on Arts and Crafts. Download the song for free at Stereogum.

The Ringo Deathstarr song is on the album Colour Trip on Sonic Unyon Records. Download the song for free at RCRDLBL.

The Drive-By Truckers song is from the album Go-Go Boots on ATO Records. Download the song for free (in exchange for your email address) at DriveByTruckers.com.

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blogs Clicky Clicky and Keeping Some Dark Secrets. Thanks to Bob Durling for the album art; find out more about his photography at his blog. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian; check out his site PodGeek.

Completely Conspicuous is a Tan God Production. Word.

Completely Conspicuous 147: Music Geek USA

Amanda Guest joins me on the podcast to discuss music geekdom. Listen to the show in streaming audio or download it directly (right click and "save as").

The show notes...

Topics:

- Check out Amanda's show Radioculars on WMWM Saturdays from 3-6 p.m. Eastern at Salem State University

- Amanda: Music geekery started when she got to WMWM

- Parents played radio for her while she was still in a crib

- Amanda's first musical memory: Manilow's "Copacabana"

- Kumar: Remember hearing War and Eric Burdon's "Spill the Wine" as 3-year-old

- As a kid, Amanda dug ABBA and Muppets albums

- Later she got into showtunes like Les Miserables, Cats

- She also liked NKOTB, Bon Jovi, DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince

- Kumar: Saw Alanis Morisette at the Paradise in '94

- WMWM's sister station is WFNX

- FNX DJ got Amanda into voiceover work

- She recited MLK's "I Have a Dream" speech

- Amanda's geekdom grew as she did radio show each week

- Easier to find more obscure music now

- Music licensing doesn't have same stigma it used to

- Amanda doesn't have too many female friends who are music geeks

- Amanda: Girls don't get as obsessive about music collections

- Guys tend to have much larger music collections

- Amanda won contest to see every concert at Paradise Rock Club in October 2009

- She went to 20 shows, spent 20 to 30 hours a week at the 'Dise that month

- Shows included Bajofondo, Blues Traveler, Bob Mould

- After that month of shows, Amanda took winter off from concertgoing

- Bonehead of the Week

Music:

Wintersleep - Trace Decay

Yuck - Georgia

Ringo Deathstarr - Imagine Hearts

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The show is sponsored by Budget, the country's premier car rental service with 900 locations. Go to Budget.com/CompCon and save 10% off any reservation or $30 off a weekly rental.

The Wintersleep song is on the band's album New Inheritors on Tom Kotter Records. Download the song at the band's website.

The Yuck song is on 7-inch release Georgia on Transparent Records. Download the song for free at Force Field PR.

The Ringo Deathstarr song is on the album Colour Trip on Club AC30. Download the song for free at RCRD LBL.

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blogs Clicky Clicky and Keeping Some Dark Secrets. Additional music used in the show is by Me and Boris the Bull, which is the brainchild of the mighty Mark Campbell. Thanks to Bob Durling for the album art; find out more about his photography at his blog.

Completely Conspicuous is a Tan God Production. Word.