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__ - _ CKS: IRELAND VS. WARD
Rrst impressions are often lasting impressions, and the
opening track on an album can set the mood for the rest of
your listening experience. The opener can reel you in, turn you
off or surprise you... Of course, that's all assuming you are old-
school and actually listen to an album from beginning to end,
as it was intended. Shuffling aside, local musicians 3ake Ward
(of garage rock band Eureka, California) and Emiliegh Ireland
(of psychedelic-folk group Helen Scott) offer their mixtapes
of favorite firsts. I suppose the real challenge here is deciding
which opener to open with! And what will the flow be like on
a mixtape comprised entirely of beginnings? Visit Flagpole,
com to stream this and all previous Mixtape Wars. As a point
of reference, we've included the name of the album each song
opens in parentheses after the track title. First things first...
let's get started.
Emileigh Ireland's Mixtape f
■iy Emileigh Ireland picked this trade: One of my favor-
rip is The Beatles' "Her MajestyIt's tight and short yet
sdU has time to lyrically arc a stolid bittersweetness into hope.
"Futile Devices" feels like that song almost in reverse, ending
itself and beginning the album with a hopeless sigh.
lake Ward's reaction: Webster's defines an opener as "a
person or thing that opens."
Well, this track does just that
and I like his phrasing.
2, -Second Hand Views'” by
Fleetwood Mac (Humours)
Eli The vadllqtipn of the
bemo^^^plea, ^^^you...
the ending round of, "I'm just
secondhand news," beautifully
sets up the entire album of con
flicting perceptions clouded by
emotion. Also, every time this ..
album comes on, I get the urge
to goon a road trip into the
mid-afternoon sun.
JW: I had a feeling after
I saw you walk home with
Rumours that this would show up. Good call, though there is
nothing more disturbing than picturing Lindsey Buckingham
laying in the tall grass doing his "stuff."
3o "Crimson ft Clover*” by Tommy James and the
ShondelU (Crimson ft Clover)
EL This album, this song, brings me right to the moment I
knew I was moving to Athens. I was visiting for spring break,
the morning was as fresh as the coffee, and nothing ever felt so
right as those first six tremolo strums.
JW: "Hey, what rhymes with clover?" "Over?" "OK, thatll
work." And thus, this powerhouse of a song was bom. So
simple and so perfect
4. "Ho Reply*” by Tfce Beaties (Beatles for Sale)
EL This album was my jam at age nine. I think it's interest
ing how this song still resonates, even though the technology we
use to ascertain that information has changed.
JW: This is my favorite Beatles opener after "It Won't be
Long." I'll argue that this has one of the best bridges out of
any song.
in prison, despite the clearly male vocab. It wasn't anything I
really thought about Not in the hundreds of times rd probably
listened through the album. Then one day, my eyes opened. I
realized my initial prejudice, to assume those gender roles, was
clearly absurd. This is what art can do.
JW: This is without a doubt the most infectious song to
have ever been written about prison. Colin Blunstone's vocals
are fantastic. The Beach Boys/Beatles influences are obvious,
but The Zombies create something entirely their own.
7. "Stereo" by Pavement (Brighten the Corners)
EL A literary group I was in, in college, played a word wit
game we called "NundeThis involves repurposing quotes, char
acters, incidences and so on from literature or pop culture into
conversation and responding with another repurposed quip. This
album feeb like a game of Nunde. To the phrase, "Hi ho, Silver,
ride,"Isay, "Genius."
JW: Everybody always mentions the line about Geddy Lee,
but really, the gem here is the opening line: "Pigs. They tend
to wiggle when they walk " Perhaps the best opening line ever?
* **f ’ *.*”1 •*
8* "Spaed of Lift" by David Bowia (Low)
0: Another instrumental Given my penchant for music of the
1960s, rrri almost surprised that Low is my go-to David Bowie
album. I find it entrancing, though. Sometimes the first phrase
of this song will get stuck in my head in a loop. I don't mind.
JW: I never owned Low,
and I feel like maybe I'm
missing out I guess it's
time to go buy Low.
9. "Metronomic
Underground" by
Stereolab (Emperor
Tomato Ketchup)
EL The duebng femqle
vocab that often wind their
way through the spacey
Emi
*
2. "Mathilda" by Scott Walker (Scott)
JW: After leaving the Walker Brothers, Scott starts his debut
album with this Jacques Brel song. Throw in some horns far good
measure, and it's a solid opener.
El: The opening trumpet phrase is such a great attention
getter! The orchestration throughout gives this song such a
drive, but it's the horns, I think, that make this song really
pop.
3. "Death on Two Legs" by Queen (A Night at the Opera)
JW: This song showcases everything great about Queen and
how there will never be cnother Queen.
El: Queen is such a great anthem band. Both this and the
previous songs feel so theatrical in their scope. With Queen in
particular, the call and response between Freddie and the cho
rus at parts remind me of the chorus of classic Greek theater.
4. "Ana Mg" by They Might bo (Hants (Lincoln)
JW: What better way to open an album than with a perfect
pop song.
EL The transition into this song is really great I almost put
this song on my mix! One of my favorite parts of this song is
the phone call recording "I don't want the world/1 just want
your half."
5. "Like a Fool" by Superchunk (Foolish)
JW: A slow Superchunk song? Mac hitting a fabetto? Yes and
yes It's the obvious setup for Foolish.
EL: Nice. I like the slower tempo of this opener. The high
note when he sings "fool" reminds me, pleasantly, of the
Doobie Brothers' "What a Fool Believes."
6. "Pretty ireen" by The Jam (Sound Affects)
JW: The bass recalb "Swingtown," and it's a standout for
being the most stereotypical Jam track on the most un-stereo-
typical Jam album.
0: The bass line here is so funky. This song sounds like it
would be fun to rock out to live in theater. I can totally get
behind The Jam.
7. "21st Century Schizoid Man" by King Crimson (In the
Court of the Crimson King)
JW: There is something to be said for the "epic opener. "Aid
this has something for everyone—fake wind sounds at the start,
long, drawn-out instrumentob and anti-Vietnam imagery.
0: I'm so glad this song is on here! King Crimson has been
one of those bands people have told me for years that I'd
like, but I just haven't gotten
around to listening to their
albums yet I think this is the
final push I needed.
Pad Music) .
0: Instrumental break! Esquivel's brand of space-age bach
elor pad music is so lush. And it's hard to be in a bad mood
when there's such pleasant whistling.
JW: I am loving Esquivel! He's like the Mexican half brother
of Jack Nitzsche, but instead of studying surf culture, he was
glued to the TV writing jingles in his head.
6. "Caro of Coll 44" by Tho Zombies (Odessey and Oracle)
0: Whenever it was that I first heard this song, I assumed
the story tine was from a female perspective about her man
lines and noise make
Emperor Tomato Ketchup
such a bright album.
There's enough going on,
where it could easily be a
bit of an incoherent mess,
but they seem to keep it.
tight effortlessly.
JW: This reminds me
a of a Cure song in the
way that it just layers and
layers and layers. After
listening to this, I am
exhausted—but in the best way.
10. "Terrapin" by Syd Barrett (The Madcap Laughs).
EL Contrary to how difficult and stressful the recording ses
sions are said to have been. Madcap Laughs has often been my
go-to album for dosing out these relaxed languid evenings that
seem to happen more and more often as the weather warms and
summer approaches. What a way to end the day... and begin an
album.
JW: Before going completely off the deep end, Barrett
crafts this beautiful, sparse, haunting pop song. How nice of
you, Syd.
Jake Ward's Mixtape
1. "Bogin" by Lambchop (/ Hope You're Sitting Down)
JW: *Men can do nothing without the make-believe of a
beginning." —George Eliot
0:1 saw Lambchop at Merge XX. It was my favorite perfor
mance of the fest. I love the cadence of his voice in this song.
8. "Invaders" by Iron Maiden
(The Number of the Beast)
JW: I'll never forget know
ing nothing about Iron Maiden,
buying Number of the Beast
putting this on and just being
blown away. Abo, I can't think
of another band that consis
tently hits it out of the park
with their openers.
0: This song reminds me of
my older brother; he's always
been into a bit heaver music
than I, and, as I recall, he
went through an Iron Maiden
phase. The shading! The vocals remind me of David Lee Roth.
hike Wmd
9. "I Confess" by Tbe English Beat (Spedal Beat Service)
JW: I think this b the best song The Beat ever recorded.
Everything about this song is firing on all cylinders. The hooks,
the piano, Wakeiing's voice, Saxo's sax, the lyrics. I don't care
what follows; Vm sold.
0: AIL right! Another song with a strong hom line. This is
an ideal song to dance alone in your room to. Which is maybe
something I did while listening to this.
10. "BabaO'ltHey" by The Who (Who's Next)
JW: rm not realty going to break new ground on why this
song b amazing, but let me end by saying fuck you, BTO, for rip
ping this off for your stupid song.
0: This is such a great'synth line, and I keep wanting to
pump my fist every time he says, "teenage wasteland." I was
reading the Wikipedia page for The Who a few weeks ago, and
I thought it was interesting that Keith Moon was the one who
thought of adding the violin towards the end. It's an awesome
tempo change.
MAY 23,2012-FLAGPOLE.COM 15