This Track Is Fire!

Note: In honor of one full year of This Track Is Fire I thought I would highlight the top 10 posts over the last year, but there's a tie in the seventh position, and a three-way tie in the tenth position, so instead you're getting the Top 12 Posts over the past year. As I said back in October , I did not even really know this track before I saw Elbow live for the first time last year, but as I said then, it was a live standout. Nine months later it's still in heavy rotation for me, which, of course it is, I love Elbow, but I love that a band that sells out stadiums in the UK but has a far more limited fanbase in the US is sitting safely at the number two spot in my list of most popular posts. I mean, they should be, but I am glad so many of you agree. Check it out !

Note: this week, in honor of the legendary Steve Albini's birthday, I am highlighting his impressive audio engineering work (he refused to be called a "producer"). These five posts are a small example of his musical prowess, selected by me, just a fan with a blog. This was a tough one for me, picking out the best Pixies song that they worked with Steve Albini on, because, honestly, I could have picked just about any song on Surfer Rosa  and it would have fit the bill. At the end of the day, I had to go with "Where is My Mind?" predominantly due to its distinct opening riff. If you're around my age and you hear Black Francis/Frank Black wail and say "Stop!" you immediately know what song it is. That's iconic, just as the Pixies are, just as Steve Albini was. Then you hear those first few guitar lines followed by drums crashing around you like the surf. God damn, this song is good. So many bands try to capture lightning in a bottle and so many f...

I've been listening to Nina Nastasia for the better part of 20 years now, having discovered this album via its reissue that was highlighted on whatever episode of what show I was listening to on NPR. I remember distinctly driving on the expressway from work back home as I listened to "All Your Life." Though the song is not about this, the repeated line "she's never coming back..." struck me, despite me being in my early 30s, it reminded me of my first real relationship, by first love from my college days. It was like Nina was singing from the future, a siren song to my former self, hearing the words that I knew I had to accept when I was in my early 20s. It's strange, because at the time I was dating the woman I was going to eventually marry (and later still, divorce), and had been in a few different relationships between that relationship and my current one, but the words were still what my heart needed to hear at 21-22. It had been an old wound that ne...

As I launch into the weekend I am looking for calm and serenity to counter the anxiety that I have been feeling the last couple (several?) weeks. While I would not call myself a fan of The Shins, I do love this particular song and can hardly believe that it's 25 years old, almost half my age. It blows my mind that 1976 is as equistant from when this came out as today. Getting old is mindblowing. Sometimes when the world is crazy you want to slip into something familiar, and today this track is a like a big warm blanket for me. Have a great weekend! Oh, Inverted World (20th Anniversary Remaster) by The Shins

Mannequin Pussy I've Got Heaven was my favorite album of 2024 (I said so here ), and a large part of that are the songs that surprised me. MP were initially a punk band, and to that effect they still are, but on their Perfect EP from 2021 they started to experiment outside of the traditional punk sound, sometimes going quieter, more vulnerable. On I Got Heaven  they continued to grow, evolve, and though there are still plenty of face-melting punk tunes, this song is a nice balance of chill mixed with a boot to the face. I loved this song when I first heard it two years ago, but due to their Tiny Desk appearance I have rediscovered it and placed it back into my song rotation. Happy Monday! I Got Heaven by MANNEQUIN PUSSY

In my opinion and experience there are many, many great albums, but there are few perfect  albums where I never skip a single track. Weezer's debut, untitled album (often referred to by the fans as simply "Blue"), is one such album. And it would be so very easy to pick "Undone (The Sweater Song," "Say It Ain't So," or "Buddy Holly" as great selections from this album, and honestly, I might highlight them in the future. But for me, the song "Surf Wax America" reminds me of being in college, working third shift the week of Spring Break because I didn't have money to go anywhere fun, enjoying the song with my friend Steve, who also loved this song so very dearly. It's a core memory of mine, because this album, this track, was important to me in my youth. Also, it's straight up fire the way that they harmonize on that chorus. All along the undertow (you take your car to work) Is strengthening its hold (I'll take my b...

I'll be the first to admit that I am not necessarily a fan of Arcade Fire. I respect them and their art, and their music is fine, but for whatever reason it has just never appealed to me, except for a few select songs. This is one of them. Perhaps it says something that this isn't a typical Arcade Fire song, but this one does speak to me. A large part of it are the lyrics. I've always been a bit of a nerd, a bit left of center, and bit on the cusp of the norm, not a Goth, but sometimes Goth-adjacent. Finding your people and being who you are and true to oneself has always been a draw for me: They heard me singing and they told me to stop Quit these pretentious things and just punch the clock These days, my life, I feel it has no purpose But late at night the feelings swim to the surface 'Cause on the surface the city lights shine They're calling at me, "Come and find your kind" Welcome to Friday! Enjoy!

Sometimes I post because I have discovered some new artist or song and I just have to share it as soon as possible. Other times I put on an album I haven't listened to in a while and as it plays in the background I am struck by the power and brilliance of a rediscovered tune. Today is definitely the latter, because wow, "Six Words" is peak Elbow and oh so sublime. Enjoy!

During one of our trips to the Detroit Auto Show in the last few years my friend Dan shared this song with the group. Having just had that same trip this past weekend I was reminded of this song, which, admittedly, makes me laugh every time. My momma said "But Mike Don't you wanna be comfortable?" I said "No! I don't wanna be comfortable!" I wanna be scared outta my head And lost outta my mind I wanna fall in and outta Love a few thousand times I wanna spend all of my money On my friends and on drugs And I wanna ride around on a Horse and give people hugs And when I come into town they'll Say "Oh shit there's Mike! There's something wrong with that boy I swear he just ain't right" 'Cause I won't waste another day Living someone else's way  I wanna be free fuck what they say I'm doing me Enjoy!

It’s far too easy to dismiss James as a one-hit wonder here in the US due to their association with the movie American Pie and its sequels, and sure, “Laid” is a fantastic song, but James have several others that are worthy of note. Like this one, from their 18th studio album. 18! How many one-hit wonders have 18 albums? Happy Friday! I hope you have a great weekend!

Last year I discovered this band via a collaboration they did with The Linda Lindas and immediately fell in love. I soon devoured their expanded version of their 2023 debut album, I Love You , with the appropriately titled I Love You Too (which I highlighted on my person blog ). The band shifted more from their punk roots toward power pop, evidenced by their 2025 album GLORY, and while I prefer their initial releases, "MOTHER" is a standout from their current album. It was just last night as I was driving in the car heading to pick up my dauther from work that this song came on and I thought to myself, "this song fucking rocks." Add to that the dark lyrics that are my happy place: I've got Mary on my shoulder Her hand on my back I'm a storm comin' in I'm the skies turning black So yeah, this track is fire! Have a happy and safe New Year tonight! GLORY by Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers

This song often reminds me of loss; I think I first discovered before my maternal grandfather's funeral and it really hit me because I had experienced a fair amount of loss in the previous 18 months: I had gone through a divorce, a friend of mine's wife lost her battle with cancer, and I lost two uncles and a grandfather. Do you realize That everyone you know someday will die? And instead of saying all of your goodbyes Let them know you realize that life goes fast It's hard to make the good things last You realize the sun doesn't go down It's just an illusion caused by the world spinning round But paired with that sense of loss is realizing, yes, we are all mortal and will therefore die, that one should appreciate, and yes, be thankful for the people in our lives and cherish the time we have with our loved ones. I will miss those people not at the table with us this week as we celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday, but I am also thankful for the time I had with them, a...

I know this track came out all the way back in April, but I didn't start this blog until a couple of months later, so I am going to cut myself some slack. I have enjoyed this song since I first heard it because it is still quintessentially Wet Leg, but also darker and more aggressive, yet still weird and esoteric. I'm good with this. So why am I bringing it up now? I make "mix-tapes" of the songs that grab my attention and download them to my phone. I was driving home from the east side of the state the other day and this track came on and though it's only six months old, I was again struck by how good it is. I don't want your love, I just wanna fight! By itself that sounds violent, and maybe it is, but Wet Leg wraps it up in layers of indie-pop goodness that makes this listener joyfully sing along. Maybe you do too. moisturizer by Wet Leg

Look, I realize that I just posted a song by Elbow on Friday , and to be clear, this isn't an Elbow fanatic blog now. That said, I was anticipating hearing  "My Sad Captains" over the weekend, but Elbow changed their setlist and, sadly, I did not get to hear it peformed live. It is what it is, the show was still amazing! I fully admit that I had only taken a cursory listen to their new album Audio Vertigo before the show, but "Sober" was definitely a live standout. I've listened to this song multiple times since hearing it live on Sunday night and am currently obsessed. So yeah, you got some Elbow on Friday, and now you get some more today because this song is now an earworm for me. It's so damn good! (FYI: this song is technically from the Audio Vertigo: Echo EP, but it is now included on the deluxe version of Audio Vertigo, as are the other EP tracks.) Enjoy!

I'm running out of miracles And the street's alive with one-man shows... Oh, long before You and I were born Others beat these benches with their empty cups To the night and its stars To be here, and now, and who we are Another sunrise with my sad captains With who I choose to lose my mind And if it's so we only pass this way but once What a perfect waste of time I'm going to fulfill a bucket list item this weekend when I see Elbow perform at the Royal Oak Music Theater on Sunday, so I wanted to share these lyrics, and this song, which are sublimely perfect. Enjoy! The Take Off And Landing Of Everything by elbow

  Let me first say that I respect Phoebe Bridgers and I fully recognize that she is massively talented. That said, for some reason her music just never seemed to click with me.  I am not saying I dislike her music, and if I could explain it better I would, but there's something about her music that just does not resonate with me even though everything else about her says that I should like her music, that I should be a fan of hers. I like strong, independent women who are singer/songwriters; in my defense I point to my love of Nina Nastasia, Fiona Apple, Ela Minus, Annie Lennox, Lady Gaga, Pink, Billie Eilish, Loretta Lynn, etc., etc., etc... Again, as I said, I respect her. I have listened to many of her hit songs and as much as I wanted them to resonate with me they just didn't. I even listened to the Boy Genius super-group she formed, and again, everything on paper said that I should like them, but again, nothing. To be clear, I didn't dislike her music; at no point did...

I mentioned before that I go through spurts of creativity, and this entry is no different. I initially drafted this entry two months ago but when I heard it played before Garbage hit the stage the weekend before last I was again reminded how good this song was. With that opening guitar lick the song draws you in, and like a cresting wave it continues to hum along but never seems to actually crash. It has a power and tension that is almost palpable, to the point that you kind of want to wash over you, but it holds you there in its power until almost four minutes in when everything comes crashing down. Damn! Apocalipstick by Cherry Glazerr