I subscribe to The Believer, a literary journal founded by Dave Eggers. Eggers is known to I’ve-loved-him-from-day-one Taylor Hicks fans, as He of the “Yes” Quote. If you have have no idea what I’m talking about, read here or here.

The June/July “music” issue of The Believer contains a mix CD. I was excited as I slid it into my car stereo. I had seen the track list: out of 20 tracks I recognized by name exactly one band/artist. Later when I started Google-ing, I was humiliated by my ignorance of so much great music. But this is why I subscribe to The Believer, Dave and his crew keep throwing me in the deep end. In the suburban neighborhood where we lived before my parents divorced, there was a neighbor who had an awesome pool. I was 8 or 9, and in the summer I was allowed to trot down the hill to take advantage of his standing invitation to use the pool. The house looked banal from the outside, but the basement contained a full disco that lent the whole place a whiff of decadent otherness. My mother always said, very quietly, but not without some awe, that she thought he might be connected with the mob. The only problem with using the neighbor’s pool was you had to put up with his pathological need to dunk children underwater for slightly more time than was comfortable. I can still remember the feeling of his huge palm pressing down on my head, hearing his laughter as I slid underwater, and the moments when I wondered if I’d ever be let up to breathe again. I thought it was a small price to pay for using that pool.

Where was I? Ah! I listened to the CD the first time and was alternately enchanted and discombobulated. There’s music that sounds oh-so-very much like The Smiths or Echo and the Bunnymen (and which gave me a happy flashback to college), other songs are haunting electro-dreamtracks and others straight-up organic instrumental. There is a little hip-hop, a little punk, and, of course, Sufjan Stevens. For me, it was a bouquet of amazement and chagrin at my ignorant state; then, I caught a whiff of happiness. I had to listen several times, and I’m still listening. These are addictive songs that need attention. I’d do a whole review, but you can check it out here.

The following is Aesop Rock’s “The Next Big Thing” and is not representative of the whole collection because nothing could be “representative” of the purposely eclectic mix on the CD. [I was going to share some music, but I'm having technical difficulties. Here's Aesop Rock's MySpace for some samples of his music, but unfortunately not the song on the CD, "The Next Best Thing." I'm digging both Aesop Rock and Sage Francis for their shudderingly smart lyrics over tight hip-hop lines.]

The article about the CD says:

Still unsure what to do with a CD that lacks a theme? These twenty tracks have been calibrated to function as a soundtrack for driving along that proverbial endless highway with the top down…or halfway down, or not down at all, or walking, or on the subway….These are summer songs, songs to be enjoyed in the summer. Though, of course, it’s always summer somewhere.

Besides the “Yes” quote connection, what does this have to do with Taylor Hicks? The CD doesn’t contain much what would be called “soul music.” Some of it took me a few listens to settle in. The repetition brought me closer, allowed me to discern the complex weaves. I’d settled into a certain blues groove and needed a refreshing splash. Perhaps the only connection is in my mind, my wanting him to put out music that challenges me, throws me in the deep end and holds me underwater.

How about you make a connection? There’s the conundrum of soul music, sometimes comfortable, but with the undertones of the blues, which are supposed to fluster and shake up the dust. The idea of “challenging” music: what do you do with it? How does the intellect inform your judgment of music? There’s always the topic of how you educate yourself musically. Feel free to lay it out…

…and check out The Believer if you like your reading to feel like you escaped a mob hit.
 

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