Week of August 31 – September 6, 2026
Sensory Dispensary
“The record you didn’t know you needed is what I am listening to in the other room.”
“The record you didn’t know you needed is what I am listening to in the other room.”
The triumphant return of my weekly Bin Diving list, the full albums I listened to over the previous week. As you know, 2026 is the year of the album so I am doing my best to avoid the mixes and dig deep into the full experience like I used to.
I’ve been doing some cool things with AI and deep dives into my last.fm listening history. It flagged this album as something I haven’t listened to in a really long time, and despite the fact that I just adore this, it fell out of rotation because it wasn’t available on any of the streaming sites. I’ve got the CD so now it returns as old school MP3s with tags and everything. This really is phenomenal playing here and some great song choices. I highly recommend it.
Another old favorite absent from streaming but on the CD shelves. Man I really missed this one, it was really great to hear it all the way through again after so long. It’s essentially Double Trouble with extra great guitarist David Grissom and the astoundingly talented Malford Milligan on vocals. You can’t go wrong with this one.
Sometimes I’ll just scroll to a random artist page on my last.fm library to choose who to listen to next. When Al Kooper came up I realized my history with him was pretty thin, so I chose an album of his I haven’t heard before and came up with this release from 1972. Nothing remarkable, other than it sounds so much like Al Kooper it’s fucking scary!
Gina and I were talking about the Singularity which made me think of this album. I know AI and Robots are not the same but it was close enough for Rock & Roll. It’s really hard for me to believe that this is the same band that did “Eye in the Sky” – this is such an iconic album and that is just so….
This is one of those gems of an album that I tend to forget about. The short-lived group featuring Matthew Sweet, Pete Droge and Shawn Mullins caught my attention upon release in 2003 with their version of “Blue” and the whole album still stands up really well, as one would expect with these guys who have all proven their musical worth. The thing I love most is how they all have very distinctive recognizable voices but they gel so well here and the harmonies are just crazy good.
I see this one quickly climbing the ranks as I listen pretty regularly. I think this is my comfort album right now, it just feeds my soul and I can pretend my life isn’t falling apart around me for a little while.
Long-time member of Tom Petty’s Heartbreakers, Melancholy Season is his second solo album, and the first since 2014. To me this album is like a comfy couch and a cup of cocoa. The title fits as the songs all have a certain somberness to them, quiet and considered. It’s one of those albums you might not listen to all the time, but one you’ll reach for when the time is right because you know it will deliver.
The enigmatic Brian Eno’s 1972 debut is a wonderful transition record as he departed from Roxy Music and embarked on his own solo career. You can hear the echoes of his Roxy past and the seeds of what he would do in the world of art and ambient music. It’s not for everyone, but I really enjoyed it.
The latest from Marshall Crenshaw, From the Hellhole, the title being a nod to his affectionately named home studio. A collection of hard to find EP tracks, some compilation contributions and a few fascinating cover song choices, Marshall continues to show the same high level of craftsmanship and care he has always applied to his music and the result is exceptional.
I guess I was playing a game of chance by following a similar artist thread that somehow got me from Marshall Crenshaw to The Monroes and their album Roulette. This is one of those albums that I hit play and I listen to, and then it ends, and then I choose something else, and it fades in to the ether because it was neither objectionable nor memorable enough to make any sort of impression.
At some point in the past I must have subscribed to this band’s email newsletter because I just got notice of this new release. I don’t remember signing up nor do I remember the band, but I was curious. I found it reminiscent of bands like The Head and the Heart (who I love) and The Lumineers (who I don’t) but featuring a lead vocalist with a voice that approached the “this is annoying” line frequently but never seemed to cross it.
The more I listen to Lucinda Williams, the more I appreciate just how good her songwriting is, the combination of her personal lyrics and the gravel in her voice make me believe every story she sings about a bar’s last call or a very late night walk home down a quiet street. Expect to see more Lucinda pop up here over the next while as I dig deeper.
This is really such a remarkable album that I think I enjoy more with each listen. Richard and Linda always sound great singing together and his guitar work is as masterful here as you would expect. I think only they could get away with a light hearted sounding folk song called “Wall of Death” which follows the haunting “Did She Jump Or Was She Pushed?” – This is an essential record. Why aren’t you listening to it right now?
It’s really hard to choose a favorite Wilco album when every Wilco album is your favorite Wilco album while you are listening to it.
The Conversation
One response to “Week of August 31 – September 6, 2026”
Lots of outstanding tunes this week! Something to take the edge off the sting of the world losing Dolly. I guess we’ll just have to keep making our own sunshine – with music and action – now that she’s gone. She taught us how.