RISE IN THE COOL OF THE EVENING

1. Sacrificial Bonfire, XTC
See, now that's a beauty way to end an album. And then the American label tacks on the cack single and fecks it all up. Dear god...

2. Jack-Ass, Beck
Odelay seems like a relic from a far-away place and time. This one made me misty in that long ago (“gravity shackles” and braying donkeys notwithstanding), and it's still pretty damn affecting...

3. Skip Steps 1 & 3, Superchunk
Step 2, apparently: Start proto-emo band.

4. Devil House, Shonen Knife
The first time I went to Japan, I met someone who recorded on the same label as Shonen Knife. He gave me a small coin purse to remember him by, and I gave him my Zippo.

5. Go Mental, The Ramones
Speaking of Shonen Knife. And this is sad and self-parodic like a good half of Rock Animals...