Volume II: Tim Kinsella

As promised, here is the second installment of the Trying to Figure Each Other Out mix series. This mix takes on Tim Kinsella, who is best known for his work with Cap'n Jazz and Joan of Arc. It spans 6 of the projects he has worked on, but in reality that is pretty inaccurate. As you will hear, there is a lot of variety within the Joan of Arc material. There is a revolving cast of musicians who have made up the band over time, with the sole constant being Tim. Wikipedia has a pretty good entry on the projects he has played with. Generally, the projects came in this order: Cap'n Jazz, Sky Corvair, Joan of Arc, Owls, Friend/Enemy and Make Believe.

I started listening to Tim Kinsella in 1998 when a friend first came to my dorm room with a Joan of Arc CD. My love for Joan of Arc was instaneous and he has been one of my favorite artists ever since. His voice is not good in the traditional sense, his lyrics are often pretentious and heavy handed, and his conceptual "songs" can make you question if you can make it through an entire album. Maybe this is why he is such a polarizing force in indie music circles. Despite these descriptions (and also because of them), Tim's influence on indie music and my musical taste has been significant.

I don't know there is much more to say. I think his music is something people either love or hate. I obviously have made my opinion known and would be interested to hear what you all think.

Trying To Figure Each Other Out (Tim Kinsella)
1 (0:00). Joan of Arc - To've Had Two Of (How Memory Works, 1998)
2 (3:00). Joan of Arc - Just Pack or Unpack (Boo Human, 2008)
3 (5:56). Joan of Arc - The Hands (A Portable Model Of, 1997)
4 (8:32). Joan of Arc - When the Parish School Dismisses (Live in Chicago 1999, 1999)
5 (12:08). Cap'n Jazz - We Are Scientists (Sometimes If You Stand Further Away..., 1993)
6 (15:14). Make Believe - Temping as a Shaman (Make Believe, 2004)
7 (18:29). Joan of Arc - Me (Plural) (Live in Chicago 1999, 1999)
8 (23:28). Joan of Arc - Post Coitus Rock (A Portable Model Of, 1997)
9 (26:45). Joan of Arc - (You) [I] Can Not See (You) [Me] (The Gap, 2000)
10 (29:58). Tim Kinsella - The Singularity Song (Crucifix Swastika, 2005)
11 (32:31). Joan of Arc - Miss Cat Piss and Peppermint (Eventually, All At Once, 2006)
12 (35:44). Cap'n Jazz - Precious (Burritos, Inspiration Point..., 1994)
13 (38:15). Joan of Arc - Sympathy for the Rolling Stones (Live in Chicago 1999, 1999)
14 (43:54). Joan of Arc - Me and America (Or) United Colors of the Gap (The Gap, 2000)
15 (49:04). Make Believe - A Song About Camping (Of Course, 2006)
16 (52:19). The Sky Corvair - Fifth Grade Teacher (Unsafe At Any Speed, 1997)
17 (55:31). Joan of Arc - White Out (How Memory Works, 1998)
18 (59:21). Owls - Everyone is my Friend (Owls, 2001)
19 (62:45). Joan of Arc - Fleshy Jeffrey (Joan of Arc Dick Cheney..., 2004)
20 (66:51). Joan of Arc - As Black Pants Make Cats Hairs Appear (The Gap, 2000)
21 (70:10). Joan of Arc - A Tell-Tale Penis (Boo Human, 2008)
22 (74:00). Joan of Arc - God Bless America (How Memory Works, 1998)
23 (76:23). Tim Kinsella - Pioneering New Emotions (He Sang His Didn't He Danced His Did, 2001)

Volume I: Phil Elvrum

I saw Mount Eerie a few weeks back and a friend who was with me told me afterwards that he didn't understand what I saw in their music. Trying to defend a musician who has probably been your favorite artist over the last decade or so is very difficult to do, especially given his recent proclivity to make music influenced by black metal. It made me think of why Phil Elvrum, in his projects of the Microphones and Mount Eerie, has so consistently been a mainstay on my stereo. The sound, I think, is completely his own, but beyond that I think his lyrics and voice are the perfect mix of honest, profound and simple. Most if not all people may disagree, but for me, there's no artist that puts all of the elements that make a musician together better than Phil Elvrum.
Phil Elvrum has been a fairly prolific artist over the years. The songs that appear on the mix span 15 albums or singles, which I think show his development as a songwriter over the last decade. Given how many songs he has recorded over time, though, this by no means gives you a full picture. Often, the songs aren't meant to stand alone musically or lyrically, so they can sound awkward or out of place at times on the mix. That's my way of saying, if you enjoy the songs in this form, definitely check out the albums.

Trying To Figure Each Other Out (Phil Elvrum)
1 (0:00). I Want the Wind To Blow (Glow Pt. 2, 2001)
2 (5:33). What? (Lost Wisdom, 2008)
3 (7:35). Antlers (Lanterns/Antlers 7", 2002)
4 (10:04). Mt. Eerie (Mount Eerie, 2003)
5 (13:23). I Hold Nothing (No Flashlight, 2005)
6 (18:22). Sand (It Was Hot, We Stayed in the Water, 2000)
7 (20:12). The Moon (Glow Pt. 2, 2001)
8 (25:07). Anacortes Has a Secret Love (Tests, 1998)
9 (28:01). Solar System (Mount Eerie, 2003)
10 (31:35). Wooly Mammoths Absence (7 New Songs, 2004)
11 (36:17). The Glow Pt. 2 (Glow Pt. 2, 2001)
12 (41:15). The Glow (It Was Hot, We Stayed in the Water, 2000)
13 (50:19). Who? (Dawn, 2008)
14 (52:23). Heart Lake Rd. (Window, 2000)
15 (55:18). Let's Get Out of the Romance (Singers, 2005)
16 (60:48). I've Climbed Mountains (Little Bird Flies Into a Big Black Cloud, 2002)
17 (63:55). Ocean 1, 2, 3 (Don't Wake Me Up, 1999)
18 (66:32). The Moon (The Moon 7", 2001)
19 (71:44). I Lost My Wind (Moon Moon 7", 1999)
20 (74:11). I Felt My Size (Glow Pt., 2, 2001)
21 (76:13). With My Hands Out (Dawn, 2008)