Todd is God

Chvrches - Every Open Eye John Grant - Grey Tickles, Black Pressure New Order - Music Complete Deafheaven - New Bermuda Janet Jackson - Unbreakable Taylor Swift/Ryan Adams - 1989 Check out this episode!

This list of 50 Classic Albums of Nashville's Post-Dylan Era, Part I (1966-72) from the Nashville Scene has two mentions of  Todd: Dennis Linde, Linde Manor (Intrepid/Mercury, 1970) Today, the Texas-born Linde is probably best known for writing such hits as "Burning Love," definitively recorded by Elvis Presley. But Linde, who died in 2006, was Nashville's equivalent to Todd Rundgren — an experimental pop musician. Produced by Jerry Kennedy and Billy Swan at Wayne Moss' Cinderella Studios, Linde Manor features horn arrangements by Bergen White. DJ Shadow sampled the title track on his 1996 trip-hop classic Endtroducing. Great Speckled Bird, Great Speckled Bird (Ampex, 1970) Moderately famous as Todd Rundgren's first production credit, Great Speckled Bird was a Nashville version of the kind of folk-rock Fairport Convention was making at the same time. "Rio Grande" was about a cocaine bust, while "Smiling Wine" was straight cou...

S. Victor Aaron over at Something Else cast thoughts back to Arena, correctly describing it as ' unabashed, hook-filled fun.'

It's autumn or fall but the music is still coming. This month we cast our ears over The Libertines - Anthems for a Doomed Youth Craig Finn - Faith in the Future David Gilmour - Rattle that Lock Keith Richards - Crosseyed Heart Dam Funk - Invite the Light Duran Duran - Paper Gods Check out this episode!

"I just got off a tour with him. I learned a lot from the tour bus. He’s a little aloof, but he’s a genius. I didn’t realize he was a tough guy, but he’s a sensitive guy as well, by the lyrics that he’s written. There’s a lot of positive material; a lot of cynical stuff too. It just came about because a few people invited him to Funkosphere, which is my club. He ended up saying, “You know what? I can’t make it there, but are you interested in going on tour?” Because he wants to not take a band anymore, just go for a DJ type of vibe. I’m not even DJing, I just play keyboards and background vocals." What was the most surprising thing you learned on tour with him? That he’s really prompt. That’s what taught me about in the future, and even now with my band, staying on time, being in the lobby at the right time, starting the soundcheck at the right time. He’s very professional. He’s very methodical. Every set each night went the same way. And it was good because every audienc...

Feels like the end of summer doesn't it Frank Turner - Positive Songs for Negative People Foals - What Went Down Public Enemy - Man Plans God Laughs Ghostfaced Killah - Adrian Younge presents 12 Reasons to Die II Chelsea Wolfe - Abyss Wilco - StarWars Check out this episode!

Michael Austin in his Orlando Sentinel (Florida) article ' How to take wine just seriously enough' has one of my favourite throw away Todd mentions I've seen in a while: " Dogs are funny and wine culture can still be a little too serious, even today. For the people who make it, serve it and sell it, OK. It's your business -- you can be serious about that side of it. But for the rest of us who have no obligation other than to enjoy it and simply appreciate it for what it is, let's keep it fun. Even though wine is one of our greatest creations -- right up there with language, flight, medicine and the music of Rush and Todd Rundgren -- let's not fetishize it." Meanwhile another review for the Runddans album - this time from The Age in Australia. Todd Rundgren is mercurial. In his long career he's been a guitar-shredding rock star, a creator of sublime pop, recording studio wizard, pioneer in the use of synthesisers, he's dabble...

Seether is neither black nor white ... Yes, another helping of mimbling and rambling from your friends at CTTB Veruca Salt - Ghost Notes Jason Isbell - Somethinh More than Free Joy Williams - Venus Ashley Monroe -The Blade Tame Impala - Currents The Chemical Brothers - Born into the Echoes  Check out this episode!

The Onion's AVC Club spoke to John AVC: You’ve got a great story in  Anger Is An Energy  about how, while you were making  Psycho’s Path , you spent an evening sitting, drinking, and listening to music with Todd Rundgren. JL:  Yes! What a great fella he can be. And in a madhouse way, you would never expect a chap like him or me to get on with each other. Well, we did! I introduced him to things that he hadn’t heard. His music is very soulful, really. White soul, which is not to say invalid at all. It’s a very seriously interesting thing. But I played a Tim Buckley track to him that he hadn’t heard of called “ Sweet Surrender ,” and we hit it off musically. We’re sort of on the same page, but very different from each other. And he’s a  great  drinker. [Laughs.] You know, you’ve got to come fully prepared for the man! But more so than that, he’s a great  thinker . And I’m always—always!—happy in the company of thinkers. AVC: Could you imagine wo...

In the words of the great Billy Idol, it was hot in the city, hot in the city tonight for this recording. Studio fans set to hurricain. Kacey Musgaves - Pagaent Material Faith No MOre - Sol Invictus Giorgio Moroder - Deja Vu Kendrick Lamar - To Pimp a Butterfly Florence & The Machine - How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful Summer Camp - Bad Love Check out this episode!

John Lydon: "Oh, I really love Todd Rundgren. His whole attitude musically is thrilling. He does what he wants to do, therefore he gains maximum interest no matter what he gets up to, for me. I would say he was more punk than a lot of these wannabes because of the variances and the challenges he gives himself musically, which is massively entertaining. That's inspiring stuff to me. People that don't wear the uniform of genres will always thrill me." [Goldmine, July 2015]

Paste magazine talks to Todd and Dam about the tour.

The LA Record has a really enjoyable interview with Todd conducted by  Jonathan Rado   of  Foxygen Some good insight into the making of  Something / Anything   and comments about   Skrillex (and the longevity of atmospheric music) I agree with too.

We've come over all electronica this month. Whether or not that is a good thing or not, you'll need to listen and find out. Also do we REALLY need a new Blur album?  Blur – The Magic Whip MG – MG Rundgren /Nikolaisen/ Lindstrøm - Runddans Blanck Mass - Dumb Flesh Speedy Ortiz - Foil Deer Hot Chip - Why Make Sense? Check out this episode!

The Guardian review of the new ( v good) Paul Weller Album makes a mention of Todd. " Weller is a magpie in terms of where he finds inspiration. Long Time chugs along menacingly like the Stooges' I Wanna Be Your Dog, while Going My Way's simple refrain veers into a Todd Rundgren -meets-the Beach Boys stomp."

Great Interview in Rolling Stone with Hans-Peter, Emil and Todd   Runddans means "rondel" in Danish, "circular object," and the title of one track is "Rundt Rundt Rundt" – around, around, around. Rundgren: "That's the central theme. The chords keep repeating, and it's hard to tell where the beginning of the sequence is. It's like an aural illusion where the sound sounds like its continually ascending when it's really repeating a cycle of harmonics. It's like you're tuning in a cosmic radio that keeps playing the same song over and over again – but it comes out different every time. It's like Groundhog Day. We refer to it as "the beginning and end of all music."  Meanwhile, Angus Findlayson at Resident Advisor is not totally convinced: "Runddans is an intriguing and sometimes fun experiment, but it's not quite a meeting of great musical minds. A pessimist might say that they've missed one an...

Ben Beaumont-Thomas in Yesterday's Guardian called Runddans "A deliriously camp treat."

Onion/AV Club has a really nice interview with Todd about Runddans and other things. On Runddans: "It’s totally sideways. Actually we worked on this project over the past almost three years, I guess. It started out as something relatively small and concise and then it just kept spreading like a disease. I guess we finally got to the point where we couldn’t think of anything else to do with it anymore and decided to wrap it up and release it. So it is something that is different by today’s terms for the most part because it isn’t songs."

Pop Matters reviews Runddans and doesn't really get it: "Rundgren’s presence is mostly limited to some lyric-less chiming, and even those tracks—“Put Your Arms Around Me” and “Altar of Kauaian Six String”—the songs where his participation is most apparent, yield results that are, in an actual song sense, almost negligible. Fans of psychedelic soirees ala early Syd Barrett-led Pink Floyd will likely find satisfaction. As for everyone else, well, suffice it to say, drugs of another sort may indeed be needed." P.S. I gave it a listen this morning and I think it is one which will be a marmite album.

The Philadelphia Inquirer on Sunday reviewed the new album from Action Bronson – "Mr. Wonderful" saying " Bronson's back-and-forth between grainy, soulful singing and rapping comes across like a modern-day Todd Rundgren circa "I Saw the Light.""