Category Archives: Check Out This Song

Songs you should check out.

Ball of Wax 53 Songs: Colin Ernst – “I Have a Friend”

The lyrics of Colin Ernst’s “I Have a Friend” aren’t as literally connected to environmental catastrophe as some of the songs here, but in context it all makes sense. The song is a jaunty retelling of the Icarus myth, which … Continue reading

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Ball of Wax 53 Songs: Danbert Nobacon and the Axis of Dissent – “To Be or Not to Be”

It is time in our track sequence to pivot from the subtle and gauzy to the strident and righteous, in the form of Danbert Nobacon and his Axis of Dissent. “To Be or Not to Be” is the second track … Continue reading

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Ball of Wax 53 Songs: James Kelly Pitts – “Answers”

I think, in the songs of James Kelly Pitts and Poor Neighbors, I have discovered a new genre: soothing songs about climate apocalypse. “Answers” is a slow, gentle song that builds gradually, anchored by a quarter-note kick drum; whole-note bass; … Continue reading

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Ball of Wax 53 Songs: Poor Neighbors – “Tolle”

It isn’t often that I come across new music with such an overwhelming pull of nostalgia that I am compelled to stop what I am doing, find a quiet place, and consume it with an openness and willingness that only … Continue reading

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Ball of Wax 53 Songs: Ketamine Cat – “Global Warming fuckfuckfuck”

I have listened to Ketamine Cat’s “Love Songs” several times this week. At the close of each listen, I am left to scratch my head and wonder why I didn’t know this artist prior to the new Ball of Wax. … Continue reading

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Ball of Wax 53 Songs: Judy Twedt – “Arctic Sea Ice”

Judy Twedt‘s “Arctic Sea Ice” is our third instrumental contribution to this environmentally-themed Ball of Wax, and definitely the most literally connected to the theme. Judy is a climate scientist (one of two to be included on this volume), and … Continue reading

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Ball of Wax 53 Songs: Darryl Blood and Green Light Cameras – “Cluster (Atmosphere)”

Ladies and gentlemen, we are floating in space. “Cluster” is the name the European Space Agency has coined for a fleet of orbiting satellites collecting data about the Earth’s atmosphere. According to our friend and longtime collaborator Darryl Blood, its … Continue reading

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Ball of Wax 53 Songs: Virgin of the Birds – “The Earth Won’t Die, We Will”

Sometime around the release of Ball of Wax 38: Songs of Protest, I began referring to the genre Virgin of the Birds occupies and has mastered as “Wiki Rock.” This is due to the large number and wide range of … Continue reading

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Ball of Wax 53 Songs: Matriarch – “Fracking”

“Fracking,” by the Seattle punk band Matriarch, begins with a guitar screaming like a buzzsaw and crashing drums and cymbals that do not let up until the close of the piece. It is ferocious. A fast and hard introductory few … Continue reading

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Ball of Wax 53 Songs: Levi Fuller – “Scott Pruitt Must Die”

In Scott Pruitt’s home state of Oklahoma, the concept of “castle doctrine” – the idea that you can protect your domicile with deadly force without fear of prosecution – extends outside the home, in the form of a “stand your … Continue reading

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