Frank Yang If we're being completely honest, there's a not-insubstantial part of me that wishes that this past weekend's shows by Neutral Milk Hotel bandleader Jeff Mangum at Trinity-St. Paul's had never happened. There was just something poetic about the disappearing act he pulled following In The Aeroplane Over The Sea , as though the album-closing sounds of the guitar being set down, chair being pushed back and footsteps into the distance was of him leaving this plane and taking his rightful place in some cosmic musical pantheon, having created [...]
[Photos courtesy of EardrumNYC ] The Elephant 6 Collective is a unique force in modern American music, a merry band of collaborators whose psychedelic, Beatles-inspired songs continue to resonate with indie aficionados across the globe. If you aren't up for seeing more than 10 bands in one place at one time, you should skip the E6 Holiday Surprise extravaganzas, because over their usual three sets in a given night, they will illuminate and educate you, as well as wear down the unready. This gig at the Knitting Factory was night one of three here in [...]
Dark Night of The Soul is a beautiful album written and produced by Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse featuring various singers. The album features James Mercer of The Shins , The Flaming Lips , Gruff Rhys of Super Furry Animals , Jason Lytle of Grandaddy , Julian Casablancas of The Strokes , Frank Black of The Pixies , Iggy Pop , Nina Persson of The Cardigans , Suzanne Vega , [...]
Our next series of q and also a comes from the duo of James and Brett from experimental gameboyDS noise outfit Endless Endless Endless . q: What is the last song you (really) heard? j: I have been going through a big Arvo Pärt phase right now and I'm loving his stuff, the only problem is the huge changes in decibels don't work so well when i am on the train. I like the music to be louder then the talking of other people so when the [...]
Location matters. If you think it doesn't then try and imagine "The Boss" coming from some place other than New Jersey. Location influences both the artist and how the listener perceives the artist. Tell me a band is from Williamsburg and I'm immediately bringing to the table a set of preconceived notions about what to expect. The Dirty Projectors , for instance, sound like 2000's indie rock by way of Brooklyn and My Name Is John Michael sounds like 2000's indie rock by way of New Orleans. My Name Is John Michael [...]
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie took their sons Maddox and Pax to the pet and garden shop Jardinerie du Centre Var in Brignoles, France on Thursday. The family left with a brand new gerbil. This cracks me up. My first thought is... "So, Brad...Angie...what exactly are you gonna do with that gerbil?" Damn you Richard Gere! [Click thumbnails for [...]
I usually try and focus on contemporary music with these Hype Device columns. After all, the entire point is to bring some attention to under looked, but deserved bands. There will always be some groups and songs that are over looked. Even with an entire collection of music that deserves to be heard, not all can be worshiped. Thus, this edition of Hype Device will focus on songs and artists that deserve some reparations (...of hype) to offset the deficiency of attention they received when they were releasing music. So hype we will. Retroactively, [...]
If you haven't noticed, I've been spending most of my time lately on my Bonnaroo previews page (less than two weeks to go!), which is why things have been quiet around here. But hopefully you've noticed that the Summer of Guest DJs is officially in full swing on the radio version of Out the Other, and this week I had my second round of guests. On Monday night, Madison Conger and Ryan Bruce of The Deli Nashville (along with their friend Elle) joined [...]
A Gerbils show from the Lost & Found Dept. I have no recollection of seeing them at Caledonia , but according to this I did. This one's heavy on songs from what I presume to be the unfinished third album. Track 1 - Track 2 - Track 3 - Snorkel Track 4 - Ted Doesn't Mind Track 5 - Are You Underwater Track 6 - My Honor [...]
Easily one of the most influential, strange, and reclusive collection of bands in independent music, the Athens, GA based pysch-rock-folk Elephant 6 Collective will be assembling several key members for a tour this October. Described by Neutral Milk Hotel member, Music Tapes Frontman Julian Koster as "a big orchestra, variety show, silly happy thing" (via Pitchfork ), the bill will celebrate of the music of Olivia Tremor Control , Circulatory System , The Music Tapes , Elf Power , The Gerbils , Scott Spillane , Nana Grizol , Nesey Gallons, [...]
Preston from Wild Sweet Orange is right - it's imperative that we start treating the Earth better. Building strip malls on marshland in New Orleans is like ringing your neighbor's doorbell just to kick him in the balls, then make a sandwich in his kitchen, using the last ounce of mayo. That's why I've decided to do something about the environment today, instead of sitting around complaining about things like I usually do. That's right, yours truly The Shark is going to put his words into action for once, and use his [...]
The Elephant 6 blog Optical Atlas has a post with the sad news that Will Westbrook, guitarist for the E6 band The Gerbils, passed away on Monday . The Gerbils formed in Ruston, Louisiana, before moving to Athens, Georgia, and affiliating themselves with the Elephant 6 Collective; they released two albums of fuzzy, lo-fi pop, as well as a bunch of singles, and they'd recently started playing shows together again after a brief hiatus. Westbrook, who was also a photographer, occasionally played with E6 bands Neutral Milk Hotel and Olivia Tremor Control. The Gerbils [...]
Shannon Palmer has posted on the E6 Townhall that Will Westbrook, guitarist for the Gerbils , passed away on Monday. While details at this point remain sketchy, it is known that Will was having health problems in recent months. Apart from being an amazing musician who left his mark on some extraordinary songs with his band, Will Westbrook was a photographer whose work can be seen on the band's albums, including the cover of 1998's Are You Sleepy? (below). My heart goes out to his family and his many friends [...]
Chromewaves
nyctaper
The Cluh
GIMME TINNITUS
Radio Exile
Allie Is Wired
out the other...
Southern Shelter
Consequence Of Sound
Uncensored Interview Blog
Idolator
Optical Atlas Newsblog: Your Elephant 6 Daily Fix of Sunshine
Bison - Quill
SABRINA JOHNSTON + TIEFSCHWARTZ
American Idol Finalists: where are they now?
