Podcasts | Fantasy Podcasts

Fantasy Covers: The '80s Part One

By The Staff | 31 October 2011

We could detail the epic swath of e-mails and curse words and heavenwards fist-shakings and corporate shenanigans that first prevented us from reaching and then brought us, finally, here, wherein we can finally reveal this to you, this podcast we love, this 50 minutes of music loved by artists we loved, lovingly given to us simply out of the kindness of their hearts. We could detail what that’s like—hearts un-kinded and loves unfurled only to pump unflatteringly into the void—but we won’t.

Because it’s here! Finally! And this is only half of it!

And we give it to you, dear readers. We give this to you.

We give you this…cover podcast of ‘80s songs? This collection of songs released when much of our staff wasn’t old enough to recognize the brilliance of this collection of songs—either that or much of our staff wasn’t even alive. We do point out Colin’s age quite a bit, but: here are all songs written before he was even born. Before he was born! That’s hilarious.

In fact, probably before you were born, too. Which isn’t meant to be a slight; them’s just the breaks. Enjoy your youth while you have it. Soon it will be unacceptable to drink PBR. Soon the sorry state of your revolting bathroom will not be something you can hide from the person you bring home from that bar where you drank three tall boys of PBR, that is, if you want to have sex with that person.

Seriously, clean your fucking bathroom.

But what’s better than having unprotected sex and not thinking about the consequences the day after—what may even be better than the notion that this is only half of our fantasy gift to you—is that these podcasts are simply preludes to what will come in the new year: our list of the Top Albums of the 1980s. In 2012. Because we wanted to?

So, as the world ends and everything you hold dear shatters about your stupid feet or dissolves around your stupid face, you can behold our picks for the most important/best/our favorite records written more than two decades earlier. It will be fun and educational, and most likely very different from all the other undoubtedly more timely Top ‘80s lists you’ve seen from better organized publications with enough money to mitigate the evil greed of those entities we have already refused discussing.

Until then, enjoy this, the best podcast we’ve ever released. So far. And thanks to all of the artists who we’ve already thanked profusely for the patience demonstrated as we stalled this podcast in production limbo like some Terry Gilliam movie or that big screen adaptation of Ender’s Game that will never, ever happen.

Know what else was written before many of us were born? Ender’s Game. That book fucking rules.

Download mp3: 192kbps / 320kbps

Cover jpeg

[50:37]

1. Conquering Animal Sound: “Cloudbusting”

2. Rich Aucoin: “Wild Heart”

3. Ravens & Chimes: “Ocean Rain”

4. Thunder & Lightning: “The Chauffeur”

5. Roommate: “A Night Like This”

6. Bad Vibrations: “Take Me to the Other Side”

7. Majical Cloudz: “Heaven Hill Rising”

  • (20:35 – 23:55)
  • contains elements of “Girl From Heaven Hill” and “New Day Rising,” both originally by Hüsker Dü, from New Day Rising (SST; 1985)
  • thirdav.com/hddb.shtml

8. Dozens: “Birthday”

  • (23:56 – 28:59)
  • originally by the Sugarcubes, from Life’s Too Good (Elektra; 1988)
  • dozens.bandcamp.com

9. Extra Happy Ghost!!!: “Filler”

10. The Cyrillic Typewriter: “Walking and Falling”

11. Leverage Models: “Party Fears Two”

12. Bambara: “Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)”

  • (37:41 – 41:44)
  • originally by Kate Bush, from Hounds of Love (EMI; 1985)
  • katebush.com

13. Julianna Barwick: “Heart and Soul”

14. Mesita: “The Rainbow”

Cover art source: 1980’s Neon Paint Splatter Fabric Digital Textile Print; http://www.flickr.com/photos/somethingfine/