06-07-19 | Songs for Listening | James Phillips
James Phillips, a Durham, NC-based musician, songwriter, and recording engineer picked tunes for Friday, June 7 at Songs for Listening. James has been a member of the band Bombadil since 2007, playing drums, keyboards, and singing. Bombadil will release their seventh album 'Beautiful Country' in the early fall. He operates a small studio from his home in Old North Durham, where he lives with his wife, puppet artist Torry Bend. James is a graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill and NCSSM.
Below are annotations to James’ playlist:
'Monkey's Paw' by Laurie Anderson
"My father is a huge music fan but my mother prefers silence. Growing up, Laurie Anderson's album 'Strange Angels' was her favorite, so we heard a lot of it as a compromise choice between my parents. I still love it, and only recently realized how strange it is."
'SpottieOttieDopalicious' by Outkast
"I listened to a lot of hip-hop growing up in Baltimore and was introduced to Outkast very early in high school after moving to Durham. It was the first thing I loved that felt distinctly 'Southern' to me. I bought the Aquamini CD from a hip-hop record shop that was in the plaza where TROSA Thrift store is now. Friends would sing the hook ("Damn, damn, damn James") of this song at me a lot at the time for obvious reasons."
'Sound of Lies' by The Jayhawks
"I was introduced to alt-country in 2001 while at NCSSM by a mentor. She burned me Wilco, Son Volt, Whiskeytown, Golden Smog, Lift to Experience, the Old 97's, and the Jayhawks, I credit that moment with the beginning of the realization that I could pursue music myself. It was hard to pick a most representative song from that collection of music, but I've been into Mellotrons lately, so 'Sound of Lies' felt like a good choice."
'Hanky Panky Nohow' by John Cale
"I moved to Portland for time beginning in 2009 & had very little money and very few friends, so I would ride my bicycle & borrow CDs from my neighborhood branch of the Multnomah County Library, & dove really deep into mid and late 70s music like Brian Eno, John Cale, David Bowie, Can, and Kraftwerk."
'Wetlands' by Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith
"I've been obsessed with Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith since I first heard her music, which I discovered because the Pitchfork review of EARS compared it to Jon Hassell and Brian Eno's "Fourth World Vol 1: Possible Music" which is a record I dearly love. Her blend of electronics and acoustic sounds is so inventive, and this record in particular feels like a immersive, beautiful, alien world."
'Monkey's Paw' by Laurie Anderson from 'Strange Angels'
'SpottieOttieDopalicious' by Outkast from 'Aquemini'
'Sound of Lies' by The Jayhawks from 'Sound of Lies'
'Hanky Panky Nohow' by John Cale from 'Paris 1919'
'Wetlands' by Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith from 'EARS'
