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Random Rules Playlist 012: Slint Family Tree

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Random Rules Playlist 012: Slint Family Tree

Tracing the musical output of Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, David Pajo and Todd Brashear, in playlist form

DJ Falkor
Oct 26, 2023
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Random Rules Playlist 012: Slint Family Tree

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Something really must have been in the water in Louisville in the 90s. If you had to distill the output of the hardcore / post-hardcore / math rock / emo / whatever scene into one album, it would have to be Slint’s second album, the absolute masterpiece Spiderland. Undisputedly one of the most influential albums of the 90s, it has also aged incredibly well. It’s hard for me to wrap my brain around how young the guys in Slint were when they came up with Spiderland. Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, David Pajo and Todd Brashear were scrawny, nerdy teenagers, not even old enough to drink booze legally when they recorded it. By the time I heard Spiderland, shortly after it came out in 1991, I thought, “I have to get my hands on everything else these guys have ever released or played on,” especially when I learned that the same guy who played drums on Spiderland also played on The Breeders’ debut, Pod. In fact, I would say that a big reason I was not a straight A student in high school was that I spent a little too much time filling my brain with the Slint and Rodan family trees, so that when I was at the record store, I wouldn’t miss any of their side projects’ releases (and they certainly didn’t make it easy, with Pajo being associated with over a dozen different aliases / projects).

Squirrel Bait

I tried to highlight tracks from these releases that really showcase the contribution of the specific member(s) of Slint in question. For example, I chose the songs from Pod where Britt Walford’s drumming really shines, and the Tortoise songs where David Pajo’s guitar work is at the forefront.

David Pajo, Britt Walford and their photographer / friend / collaborator, Will Oldham

Random Rules Playlist 012: Slint Family Tree

This playlist is roughly in chronological order, based on the original release date of each track:

  1. Squirrel Bait - “Sun God” - Feat. Brian McMahan & Britt Walford

  2. Squirrel Bait - “Perfect” - Feat. Brian McMahan & Britt Walford

  3. Squirrel Bait - “Thursday” - Feat. Brian McMahan & Britt Walford

  4. Squirrel Bait - “The Final Chapter” - Feat. Brian McMahan & Britt Walford

  5. Squirrel Bait - “Short Straw Wins” - Feat. Brian McMahan & Britt Walford

  6. Squirrel Bait - “Black Light Poster Child” - Feat. Brian McMahan & Britt Walford

  7. Squirrel Bait - “Kid Dynamite” - Feat. Brian McMahan & Britt Walford

  8. King Kong - “Movie Star” - Feat. David Pajo, Brian McMahan, Britt Walford

  9. Slint - “Nan Ding” - Feat. David Pajo, Brian McMahan, Britt Walford

  10. Slint - “Kent” - Feat. David Pajo, Brian McMahan, Britt Walford

  11. Slint - “Darlene” - Feat. David Pajo, Brian McMahan, Britt Walford

  12. The Breeders - “Happiness Is A Warm Gun” - Feat. Britt Walford

  13. The Breeders - “Hellbound” - Feat. Britt Walford

  14. The Breeders - “When I Was A Painter” - Feat. Britt Walford

  15. The Breeders - “Iris” - Feat. Britt Walford

    The classic Slint lineup
  16. Slint - “Breadcrumb Trail” - Feat. David Pajo, Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, Todd Brashear

  17. Slint - “Nosferatu Man” - Feat. David Pajo, Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, Todd Brashear

  18. Slint - “Washer” - Feat. David Pajo, Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, Todd Brashear

  19. Slint - “Good Morning, Captain” - Feat. David Pajo, Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, Todd Brashear

  20. Slint - “Todd’s Song” - Feat. David Pajo, Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, Todd Brashear

  21. The Breeders - “Don’t Call Home” - Feat. Britt Walford

  22. The Breeders - “Safari” - Feat. Britt Walford

  23. King Kong - “Dirty City Rainy Day” - Feat. Britt Walford

  24. Palace Brothers - “I Tried To Stay Healthy For You” - Feat. Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, Todd Brashear

  25. Palace Brothers - “O Lord Are You In Need?” - Feat. Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, Todd Brashear

  26. Palace Brothers - “King Me” - Feat. Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, Todd Brashear

  27. Palace Brothers - “O Paul” - Feat. Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, Todd Brashear

  28. Slint - “Glenn” - Feat. Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, Todd Brashear, David Pajo

  29. Slint - “Rhoda” - Feat. Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, Todd Brashear, David Pajo

  30. Evergreen - “Wholeness Of The Soul” - Feat. Britt Walford

  31. Evergreen - “Blood” - Feat. Britt Walford

  32. Evergreen - “Knowledge” - Feat. Britt Walford

  33. Palace Songs - “Horses” - Feat. Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, David Pajo, Todd Brashear

  34. Papa M - “Safeless” - Feat. David Pajo

  35. Papa M - “Napoleon” - Feat. David Pajo

    The For Carnation
  36. The For Carnation - “How I Beat The Devil” - Feat. Brian McMahan, David Pajo

  37. The For Carnation - “Get And Stay Get March” - Feat. Brian McMahan, David Pajo

  38. King Kong - “Danger” - Feat. David Pajo

  39. Tortoise - “Glass Museum” - Feat. David Pajo

  40. Tortoise - “The Taut and Tame” - Feat. David Pajo

  41. Tortoise - “Along The Banks Of Rivers” - Feat. David Pajo

  42. Tortoise - “Gamera” - Feat. David Pajo

  43. Papa M - “Vol de Nuit” - Feat. David Pajo

  44. Palace Music - “Little Blue Eyes” - Feat. David Pajo

  45. Evergreen - “Fairlane” - Feat. Britt Walford

  46. Evergreen - “Solar Song” - Feat. Britt Walford

  47. The For Carnation - “On The Swing” - Feat. Brian McMahan

  48. The For Carnation - “I Wear The Gold” - Feat. Brian McMahan

  49. The For Carnation - “Preparing To Receive You” - Feat. Brian McMahan

  50. Aerial M - “Skrag Theme” - Feat. David Pajo

  51. Aerial M - “Dazed and Awake” - Feat. David Pajo

  52. Aerial M - “Vivea” - Feat. David Pajo

  53. Aerial M - “AASS” - Feat. David Pajo

    Nardwuar gifts Jack Harlow a copy of Spiderland
  54. Tortoise - “TNT” - Feat. David Pajo

  55. Tortoise - “Swung From The Gutters” - Feat. David Pajo

  56. Tortoise - “The Suspension Bridge at Iguazu Falls” - Feat. David Pajo

  57. Tortoise - “Everglade” - Feat. David Pajo

  58. Pullman - “Gravenhurst” - Feat. David Pajo

  59. Papa M - “Arundel (I)” - Feat. David Pajo

  60. Papa M - “Knocking The Casket” - Feat. David Pajo

  61. Papa M - “Up North Kids” - Feat. David Pajo

  62. Matmos - “Rigged Seance” - Feat. David Pajo

  63. The For Carnation - “A Tribute To” - Feat. Brian McMahan

  64. The For Carnation - “Moonbeams” - Feat. Brian McMahan

  65. Dntel - “Why I’m So Unhappy” - Feat. Brian McMahan

  66. Mogwai - “Take Me Somewhere Nice” - Feat. David Pajo

  67. Papa M - “Local Boy Makes Good” - Feat. David Pajo

  68. Papa M - “Jaded Lover” - Feat. David Pajo

  69. Papa M - “Northwest Passage” - Feat. David Pajo

  70. Papa M - “Glad You’re Here With Me” - Feat. David Pajo

  71. Papa M - “Roses In The Snow” - Feat. David Pajo

  72. Papa M - “Beloved Woman” - Feat. David Pajo

  73. Continental Op - “Fantasy” - Feat. David Pajo

  74. Papa M - “Mountains Have Ears” - Feat. David Pajo

  75. Papa M - “Wedding Song No. 3” - Feat. David Pajo

  76. PAJO - “High Lonesome Moan” - Feat. David Pajo

  77. PAJO - “Mansion Twins” - Feat. David Pajo

  78. Yo La Tengo - “Autumn Sweater” (Tortoise Remix) - Feat. David Pajo

  79. PAJO - “Foolish King” - Feat. David Pajo

  80. PAJO - “Wrong Turn” - Feat. David Pajo

  81. PAJO - “I’ve Just Restored My Will To Live” - Feat. David Pajo

  82. Dead Child - “Twitch Of The Death Nerve” - Feat. David Pajo

  83. Dead Child - “Never Bet The Devil Your Head” - Feat. David Pajo

  84. Kim Deal - “Biker Gone” - Feat. Britt Walford

  85. Watter - “Bloody Monday” - Feat. Britt Walford

  86. Watter - “Sacrificial Leaf” - Feat. Britt Walford

  87. Goatsnake - “Another River To Cross” - Feat. David Pajo

  88. Karen O - “I Shall Rise” - Feat. David Pajo

  89. Papa M - “Walking On Coronado” - Feat. David Pajo

  90. Papa M - “Walt’s” - Feat. David Pajo

  91. Papa M - “The Upright Path” - Feat. David Pajo

  92. Household Gods - “Storied Past, Bright Future” - Feat. David Pajo

  93. Household Gods - “(Before the) Avalanche” - Feat. David Pajo

  94. Jaye Jayle - “Help!” - Feat. Britt Walford

  95. Bill Callahan & Bonnie Prince Billy - “I Love You” - Feat. David Pajo

Now, for the really fun stuff - Slint Family Tree: key tracks not on Spotify:

For further listening, may I recommend an older playlist I made w/ an extremely deep dive into the “slowcore” genre:

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Random Rules Playlist 012: Slint Family Tree

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Random Rules Playlist 012: Slint Family Tree

djfalkor.substack.com
Reda Rountree
Writes Only Murders In The Inbox
Oct 26

This is truly the most in-depth music article I’ve ever read, and I absolutely love the inclusion of songs missing on Spotify that you can listen to right here! Love this!

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