Fred Armisen's Favorite Records (Playlist Edition)

Next up in the Favorite Records Series is the amazing Fred Armisen! In addition to being a comedian, actor and writer, Fred is also a musician/drummer (from his band Trenchmouth, to Les Savy Fav's Let's Stay Friends and more).

He just released 100 Sound Effects via Drag City, which does indeed contain some gems, from "Trying Out a Distortion Pedal at a Music Store" and "Couple on Plane Mid-Flight Guy Opens Overhead Compartment", to "Thrift Store Perfunctory Search for Halloween Costume" and "Walking into a Video Room at an Art Museum and Walking Out Quick". It also features contributions from Mary Lynn Rajskub, Amber Coffman, Tim Heidecker, and Riki Lindhome. Highly recommend.

For Synth History Favorite Records, artists list 10-15 of their favorite records. Rules are at least one album needs to contain a synth or drum machine of some kind. Fred included synths in all of his picks, and this is a special "playlist" edition!

Without further ado...

Fred Armisen courtesy of Drag City.

100 Sound Effects - Fred Armisen.

1. The Cars - “Heartbeat City”

I love the synth sounds in this. It’s somehow very warm and melancholy, but also confidently recorded. Like they have a real handle on the instrument. It reminds me of driving at night. 

2. DEVO - “S.I.B. (Swelling Itching Brain)”

I could put every DEVO song on this list, but I just picked the first one that jumped out at me as quintessential DEVO. I like that the bass notes are the first thing you hear. A great mix of acoustic drums, electric guitar and synth. 

3. Big Audio Dynamite -  “E=MC2”

There’s so much emotion in these sounds. One of my favorite songs ever.

4. Kraftwerk - “Home Computer”

I love Kraftwerk. This sounds great on any sound system or device. Home stereo, car, or phone speaker, it’s always defined and sharp. In some ways, this album seems like something bigger than being created on synthesizers. Like, if I got the opportunity to meet them, I imagine them explaining that it wasn’t as simple as that. I haven’t heard sounds like this on albums since. This whole album is a masterpiece.

5. Stereolab - “Percolater”

I like how sparse and melodic this part is. They also seemed to lean more on organs and other keyboards. This synth sound stands out. 

6. The Who - “Going Mobile” (synth guitar solo)

I love this song, and I still can’t figure out how he put a guitar synth together back then. How was this done? It sounds so cool!

7. Parliament - “Supergroovalisticprosifunkstication”

First I thought: Bernie Worrell. I’ve seen him live a few times. And then I looked for where he was featured more prominently. So many Parliament songs, but this one felt immediate.

8. Brainiac - “V1NC3NT COM3 ON DOWN”

My band got to play with them a few times, and it was somehow a little shocking at the time to see someone play a little synth. Most bands were all guitars. He really embraced it, and he made it sound messy and loud. A great use of the instrument. Kind of Mark Mothersbaugh’s approach!

9. The Beatles - “Here Comes The Sun”

I always marvel that there’s a Moog on Beatles music. There’s so much of it on this song. I think I didn’t realize it for quite a few years of listening to it. Now I like to wait for that part to come up and I focus in on the sound. 

10. Talking Heads - “Girlfriend is Better”

That bass part way at the end is so good!

Synth History Exclusive.

Conducted by Danz.