5 tracks to kick off your weekend.

Welcome back to Schnide’s 5™️! Closing out a month’s worth of music recommendations. Haven’t written this consistently since I was rocking my Costco-purchased Brother Word Processor in college.

We’re quickly closing out the first half of the year, which is crazy to ponder. Time flies when you’re working from home in your soft pants. I’m cooking up a mega playlist (not to be confused with a MAGA playlist which would undoubtedly feature that ode to the January 6th-ers) to share with y’all. I’ll be in transit so it might come over the July 4th weekend instead of our usual time together on Friday afternoons. You’ll manage. Here are cinco trackos (I’m such a gringo) to rock the party this weekend.

The Smile “Bending Hectic”

Radiohead side project The Smile is back with a new single. Holy guacamole. A tranquil twisted ballad with strings that features Thom Yorke in fine voice and erupts into a fury of Jonny Greenwood induced guitar grandeur. Holy guacamole, with a side of queso. This track has been performed on tour, a tour I missed when it came through LA late last year. Sadly, I actually had tickets but sold them in a fit of “goddamn it life is too fucking expensive so I guess I gotta torture myself by selling off these tickets” rage. I regret the error.

Faye Webster “But Not Kiss”

Everyone’s favorite Atlanta based sharp-tongued singer-songwriter Faye Webster is back with a new single. It is unclear if it will be accompanied by a new album imminently, but that’s not important right now. What is important is that she filmed the music video at Bob Baker Marionette Theatre. I don’t think a child who was raised in LA has not visited this old mecca for marrionetture. Seeing the video immediately brings me back all of the feels of that place – fifty layers of dust, the general essence one experiences when walking down the hallway of their grandmother’s apartment, etc etc. I saw Faye a couple years ago open for Wilco and she was lesser known; she just immediately sold out two shows at the Novo before I was able to log on to Ticketmaster. Grrrr.

Killer Mike, “SCIENTISTS & ENGINEERS”

Call it an ATL twofer. Killer Mike came up in the world of the Dungeon Family and Outkast, whose hallmark is a laid back funkiness rarely felt in his “day job” of Run The Jewels. But this track feels like it would be at home on Stankonia, with Mike sorta in the Big Boi role. For more of a RTJ vibe, check out “Don’t The Devil”.

Mandy, Indiana “Pinking Shears”

There is a lot one can say about Mandy, Indiana. It brings to mind the Beatles/Harrison, the farther one travels…the less one knows. First question is obvious: how the fuck did an English-French noise rock from Manchester name themselves after a town in the conservative midwest state of Mandy, Indiana? This is a bit of a trick question, as my research team has looked into it and there is now town called Mandy. Apparently it’s a take off of Gary, IN? What the heck are we even talking about at this point. Here’s what I know: this band is like nothing you have ever heard before, every time I listen to them I’m enthralled, and I can’t fucking wait to see them perform at the Echo in December. OK there’s a lot to look forward to between now and then, but still.

The Isley Brothers, “Footsteps In The Dark, Pts 1 & 2”

Everyone, even your favorite dadrock journalist, can’t know about everything everywhere all at once when it comes to music. Even if you fancy yourself as a musicologist of sorts, certainly artists or albums or songs have come along that slipped past the goalie, so to speak. When programming our family band-themed episode for the highly listened to radio show Music From My Dad on KZSC at UC Santa Cruz, we got a fantastic request for The Isley Brothers’ “Footsteps In The Dark, Pts 1 & 2”. I was not familiar with this track. If you’re not familiar with it, take a listen and you’ll hear that it formed the sample for Ice Cube’s “It Was A Good Day”. Other than our listener, who knew? Lots of people for sure, but I just missed it. It’s interesting to listen to a song that conjures a nostalgic feeling towards the subsequent track that sampled it as opposed to the original. Go ahead and listen to “Footsteps” and not think about that fateful day when the Lakers beat the Super Sonics. You just can’t.

Happy listening.