Tales from the Bitface

This was an Apple-Music-generated playlist. It considers the following to be my ’essentials’, as of yesterday.

• The Fall — Kicker Conspiracy
• The Velvet Underground — White Light/White Heat
• James — What For
• John Cale — Fear Is a Man’s Best Friend
• The Beatles — I Am the Walrus
• Joe Strummer — Gangsterville
• Warren Zevon — Something Bad Happened to a Clown
• New Order — Your Silent Face
• David Bowie — The Motel
• Kenickie — Spies
• Big Country — Harvest Home
• The Stranglers — Dagenham Dave (1996 Remastered Version)
• 10,000 Maniacs — My Mother the War
• Cocteau Twins — From the Flagstones
• Wet Leg — Convincing
• Radiohead — Anyone Can Play Guitar
• Sonic Youth — What We Know
• The Long Blondes — Separated By Motorways
• Arctic Monkeys — A Certain Romance
• Ramones — Baby, I Love You
• The View — Same Jeans
• Stiff Little Fingers — Go For It (Remastered)
• Grizzly Bear — While You Wait for the Others (BBC Maida Vale Session)
• The Big Pink — Dominos
• Thea Gilmore — Heart String Blues

I can see where it’s coming from, to a degree. The Fall, of course, and I’ve been playing them a lot recently for reasons I’ll go into later. Joe is there (though not The Clash), The Velvets, John Cale on his own (though not Lou). James, SLF of course (but the strange choice of their only instrumental).

All fine. Odd choice of Bowie track, but then, I did play through all his later albums recently, for reasons that I also might go into later.

10,000 Maniacs, though? I hardly know the track (though I like it), and I don’t think I’ve ever listened to an album by them. I don’t much like Arctic Monkeys, though that song is fine. But the Grizzly Bear one? I don’t think I’ve ever heard anything by them, including that one.

Oh yeah, and a very odd choice of Warren Zevon track.

It closes well, though: I love that Thea Gilmore track.

But you’ve got to wonder what goes into the algorithm that generates this kind of thing.