But How Good Are They With Maple Syrup?

My quick trip to Trader Joe's today turned into a sad yet fruitful trip to the record store next door. The House of Records, "L.A.'s oldest record store," on Pico is closing! Right now everything is 30% off (and the prices are cheap to start with). It's a great little store -- they have a huge vinyl collection, lots of CDs under $5, and a listening station that can accommodate as many people as are ever in the store at one time (hmm.. maybe that's not such a good thing?). But their best asset is (presumably) their access to promos. They are just a couple doors down from The National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, and as one might expect, they have tons of "for promotional use only" CDs and LPs on their racks. It's always fun to look at the extra info the companies provide on those disks -- blurbs to read on the air about how great the band is, suggestions about which songs to play, details on release dates, etc.

Once I saw the huge "closing" sign I knew I had to go in. So today's playlist is a collection of new acquisitions. I didn't notice until I sat down to write this, but I really do seem to stick to themes when I select music, whether I am aware of it or not. Today's theme is Britian (esp. britpop):

The Soft Boys -- Nextdoorland (promo CD -- 2002)
The Charlatans -- Tellin' Stories (1996)
Blur -- The Great Escape (promo CD -- 1995)
Oasis -- Interview Disc & 120 page book (1996)
New Order -- Waiting For The Sirens' Call (2005)(yes, I finally got it)

and the one "local" album:
Marky Ramone and The Intruders -- The Answer To Your Problems (1999)
.