A break from the World Cup

I haven't been listening to as many records or making as much music lately on account of the incredibly exciting (mostly) football being played lately (I've only missed two or three matches), but I have made a one string guitar out of an old guitar body, a root beer bottle, a few screws, and a guitar pick up, and I've converted an old telephone handset into a microphone. Both are super fun.

But, I realized recently that no matter what I might say about their other records, my favorite Beatles record is Magical Mystery Tour. Aside from the rather inane opener, almost every track is either laden with brilliant studio experimentation (Baby You're a Rich Man, Blue Jay Way), a great pop song (Penny Lane, All You Need is Love), or both (I am the Walrus, Strawberry Fields Forever). Sgt. Pepper may have been the more groundbreaking and more coherent, and Abbey Road may have been the peak of their composition (the side B medley? Come ON! Brilliant), but Magical Mystery Tour is just plain brilliant. And the most weird, which some people might say is basis for me to like it.

And maybe they're right. Here's a list of records that haven't been far from my turntable lately. I guess some are pretty weird.

Deerhunter - Cryptograms/Flourescent Grey

The Flaming Lips - The Soft Bulletin; Embryonic*

Dntel - Dumb Luck

Portishead - Third

Radiohead - Amnesiac; In Rainbows

Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest

The Shins - Wincing the Night Away

Broken Bells - s/t

The Doors - Strange Days

*after claiming I only really liked these two, I gave Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots more of a listen, and it's brilliant. Then after conceding that, I gave At War With The Mystics more of a listen, guess what? Also brilliant. But I still don't like In A Priest Driven Ambulance