Tracks for November

These are the stuff I’ve been listening to this month.  At the end of last month, I discovered podcasts – amazing stuff! – so you can start looking forward to weird podcast suggestions.

Franz Ferdinand – Dark of the Matinee – 2009

I of course enjoy the mega hit Take Me Out, but Dark of the Matinee has a crazy catchy tune.  It’s also insanely British, and I enjoy it a lot.  I also like the band name because it reminds me of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.

Fleet Foxes – Blue Ridge Mountains – 2008

This is a deep cut from an album that came out while I was in college.  I think it’s gives me a breath of nostalgia, reminds me of when I got the album.  One of my friends had discovered the band and suggested it to me.

I’m not actually a huge fan of any of the other Fleet Foxes albums either before or after this record.

Biddu Orchestra – Summer of ’42 – 1975

I like a lot of Biddu songs, and this one fits my usual desires quite nicely.  This instrumental feels egregiously 70’s, and I still don’t know how this song is supposed to make me think of the Summer of ’42.  I think it may have appeared in a movie about a guy who was going to college during the war, but I’ve never seen it and don’t really care to look for it.

Slate – Slow Burn – Podcast

You might already have some feelings about slate.  It is a left-of center news and information group, and I can confirm that the bias is real.  I was skeptical of this show at first because of Slate’s obvious reporting bias.  But Slow Burn?  Goddamn.  Holy crap.  It’s absolutely fantastic.

Slow Burn is a podcast about political scandals, and only the biggest ones.  I don’t know if there will be a season 3 or not, but seasons 1 and 2 focused on prior incidents of presidential impeachment.

I used to think I knew a lot about Watergate, but season 1 of Slow Burn showed me I don’t know jack.  I didn’t know who Martha Mitchell was, nor was I aware just how bipartisan the process went.  If you listen to Slow Burn season 1 as a millennial, you’re probably going to be surprised at how so many politicians seemed earnest and good.  Nixon is a fantastic villain, and the story is fulfilling to listen to.

In contrast, there’s Slow Burn season 2 about the Lewinsky affair. It’s sordid and awful, far worse than I had realized (I was too young when the Lewinsky stuff happened for me to remember much on my own).  I wanted to just scream after listening to season 2 because nothing good happened.  Don’t listen to season 2 expecting the uplifting release at the end that you got out of season 1.

If political scandal be something you wish, listen to Slow Burn.  Here’s the link again.