The Return of the Friday 5!!

The Beach Boys - “Johnny Carson” from Love You
By 1977, The Beach Boys were in bad shape…Brian Wilson’s mental condition was getting worse and worse, and their popularity wasn’t doing much better…Love You, released the same year as some of punk’s classic discs, featured the lead Wilson’s new favorite instrument: the Moog…what came out of the session is regarded to be the last listenable Beach Boys album, of which this bizarre ode to the late-night icon is a good representation…

The Asteroids Galaxy Tour - “Around The Bend” from Around The Bend EP
Just like the old days, Denmark’s Asteroids Galaxy Tour burst onto the scene not with a debut album, but a scant 3-song EP…the group, whose funky horn flares and lo-fi production recall The Go! Team, and this song even got into an iPod commercial (though, really, who’s song hasn’t?)…I sure hope they release a full-length soon, because only having 11 and a half minutes of the stuff is just not fair…

The Gothic Archies - “Scream And Run Away” from The Tragic Treasury
One of many, many projects from Magnetic Field’s head honcho Stephin Merritt, The Gothic Archies is probably his most outwardly funny group…this particular collection of songs originally appeared in the audiobook versions of Lemony Snicket’s A Series Of Unfortunate Events (the author himself appears, under his real name, on accordion)…with references to Count Olaf and other characters in the book series, Merritt makes reading fun!…

East Hundred - “Dear Blue” from Passenger
There’s a little bit of Belly, The Breeders and other moody, female-fronted ‘90s bands in East Hundred’s sound…one of the newest young bands to come out of Philadelphia, this group has got a lot going for them: toy piano, drum sequences, and leader Beril Guceri’s soaring voice…they are certainly a group to keep an eye on…

Public Image Ltd. - “Flowers Of Romance” from Flowers Of Romance
Before their 1981 album, bassist Jah Wobble left PiL on not-so-amicable terms…as a shot at their ex-member, Flowers Of Romance features no bass on 7 of the 9 tracks (and guitarist Keith Levene played bass on those songs)…what results is one of the most jarring, sinister albums ever…John Lydon played violin and saxophone on a few of the tracks, despite having never been trained on either instrument…

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