Bad Brains, "Sailin' On"

18 Days to Find a Home


Even in the Converge and Dillinger Escape Plan era, the first few seconds on Bad Brains' first album feel like a knockout blow to the head. The lyrics are almost comically nonchalant for such a breakneck song--there's no sailing going on here, this is a hurricane. There are melodies buried in "Sailin' On", most apparent in the background vocals that chime in at the :28 mark, and several cover versions (astonishingly, No Doubt, Living Colour, Soulfly and Moby have all recorded it) have unearthed more of the tune. But on Bad Brains it's a war between H.R. and Dr. Know, the former's You Can't Fire Me Because I Quit narrative trading punches with the latter's monstrous, distorted riffage (plus a solo? On a hardcore album? By devout Rastas? In 1982?). In the end, kicking the storyteller out gives them what they both want, but we know who the real winners are.

Cavalera Conspiracy, "Inflikted"

Few songs display the powers of band chemistry like Cavalera Conspiracy's "Inflikted."


After ruling the death metal landscape through the first half of the '90s, Max Cavalera left Sepultura (and his brother, drummer Igor) to form Soulfly. Neither Soulfly nor Max-less Sepultura ever released anything worth listening to more than once, but I attributed that to Max's inevitable artistic decline and the fact that Sepultura lost their main songwriter, respectively. Whatever the case, both bands went deeper into the Cavaleras' fascination with world music, but no amount of tribal percussion could disguise how far the songwriting had slipped.

But for 2008's Inflikted, the Cavaleras reunited to create their best music since the classic Sepultura days. It helped that they had Gojira's Joe Duplantier and guitar wizard Marc Rizzo on board, but the Cavaleras have always worked with great musicians. Inflikted really scores becauses Max and Igor bring out the best in each other--hearing them apart is like hearing Eddie without Alex, or Dimebag without Vinnie. Check out how little there is to the title song--outside of the chaotic breakdown, there's nothing that a beginner guitar student couldn't play, or no lyrics that any moron couldn't write. But Max's phrasing on both the guitar and vocal lines proves that he never needed any of Soulfly's bells and whistles, just his brother to kick his ass a little.

I am thrilled to see that James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem is producing an EP with Max and Igor Cavalera, described by Igor as "a metal version of the White Stripes." If the jump from Soulfly and recent Sepultura to "Inflikted" is any indication, we have a lot to look forward to.

Boyz II Mom

My mom doesn't ask for much, except for a mix CD two days of the year. One of these days comes on a Sunday in May.



Boyz II Mom

1. The Beatles, "Mother Nature's Son"
2. Warren Zevon, "Mama Couldn't Be Persuaded"
3. Mr. T, "Treat Your Mother Right"
4. Ozzy Osbourne, "Mama, I'm Coming Home"
5. Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention, "Motherly Love"
6. Waylon Jennings & Willie Nelson, "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys"
7. Bob Dylan, "Mama, You Been on My Mind"
8. Funkadelic, "Cosmic Slop"
9. Marc Rizzo, "Mamasita"
10. John Lee Hooker, "Mama, You've Got a Daughter"
11. The Rolling Stones, "Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby, Standing in the Shadow?"
12. Neil Young, "New Mama"
13. Danzig, "Mother"
14. The Jackson 5, "Mama's Pearl"
15. 2pac, "Dear Mama"
16. Pink Floyd, "Mother"
17. Merle Haggard, "Mother Tried"
18. John Lennon, "Mother"
19. Johnny Cash, "Send a Picture of Mother"
20. Paul Simon, "That Was Your Mother"
21. The Beach Boys, "Mama Says"
22. Stevie Wonder, "Easy Goin' Evening (My Mama's Call)"

22 recordings of boys honoring moms in song.

With my mom's preferences in mind, metal is at a minimum. Ozzy was of course the first to spring up, and Danzig's "Mother" is almost as cuddly these days. Marc Rizzo from Soulfly pulls off an impressive flamenco number on "Mamasita," but Mom's tastes are more reflected in the Beatles and Stevie Wonder picks.

Of course a Mother's Day mix needs a lot of country ("Mama Tried" being the one I can relate to most,) and I got to rescue 2Pac and Pink Floyd tracks from records that I used to bother Mom with. I actually like both of them better in this context, and I'm hoping she will, too. With the Stones and Beatles, I shunned the obvious choices ("Mother's Little Helper," "Your Mother Should Know") and wound up with better songs. Not that I'm elitist enough to admit it.

Luckily, two of my favorite sources for music, Rob Sheffield and Sound Opinions, also came up with playlists for me to cherry pick from. This resulted in Funkadelic's terrific "Cosmic Slop," which I hadn't realized counts as a mom song, a wistful a capella number from the Beach Boys and most notably, "Treat Your Mother Right," which could not exist if not for mixes like this one.

Listening again, I'm wondering if the Zappa and John Lennon choices were appropriate. I guess that many boys have complicated feelings about their mommies.

Happy Mother's Day, Mom Apatoff.

Download here: Boyz II Mom