From Amazing Wow: Viral videos have snuck in the cracks of my life for years. I find myself clicking "stumble" almost compulsively between trying to do more "legitimate" work. As a schmaltzy printellectual, I find myself trying to break down what makes a video go and stay viral on the web. And I really don't believe it's the same thing that makes a video succeed on TV. Last year, I did a 65 percent serious lecture on Lolcats, trying to pinpoint the juice. (I'll up my powerpoint later). For now, let's consider the number two stumble [...]
It's sort of difficult to call this my own composition, since it's more a celebration of this really fun and silly riff from "Moutchatcha Franyra." This one goes out to my best dancer, Mu Abeledo. Crib Sweetner
What am I doing instead of reading a biology paper? I'm playing goddamn Bubble Spinner . Old news to the addicting gamers, I know, but damn it's addictive. I'm not a master, but here's what I've found out: Look ahead at all costs. Interior breaks that knock huge arms off are way more important than the little clusters on the side The first bubble is always green. If you can't knock off something with it, hit reset. Aim carefully with your mouse. Don't take shots you might miss. [...]
It's getting warmer. Here's an attempt at a "Summertime Beat." The piano is a Franky Sin-at lick, and the trumpet is courtesy of Clifford Brown. Manhattan Captain Blush wine to go with it.
I've decided to try to use The Hippodrome as a personal blog, for writing and other stuff, because I've heard that blogging is really in. My tone will now be less pretentious and more professional. Sound good?
Friends, The Hippodrome has existed for over a year as a bastion of unsigned music. I started this blog because I thought traditional record labels were lame and obsolete, and I've tried to create a place that tried to debunk the myths surrounding the word "signed." After a year of brooding on the industry's problems, I feel that there are still valid aspects of the record label, namely the camaraderie of being on a team, the promotional benefits, and the ability to organize creativity constructively. The things I still don't like are the traditional cost structures, [...]
Turbo Broom Scene: From the classic film Breakin' , this is Turbo's coming out dance. I think I'd like this less if you couldn't see the string on the floating broom. DJ Jubilee: A friend turned me on to this dude last year, and I've since watched this video upwards of 30 times. DJ Jubilee coined hundreds of dances, and managed to make this incredibly high budget film showcasing a bunch of them. MTV Breaking [...]
Ready for the four hippest bands this fall? Instant cred, go! The Band: Miracles of Modern Science The Single: MR2 Miracles of Modern Science (or M.O.M.S) might look on first appearance like just another space-rock bluegrass band. But actually, they play really fucking catchy pop songs that call to mind vintage Andrew Bird or Final Fantasy. [...]
M.O.M.s have just put out a new single and a new mix of an oldie. Enjoy it! And believe me everyone, there's an exciting explanation on the way for the lack of updates. It rhymes with Eckard Fable. Audio: Eating Me Alive Audio: MR2
(This is the third part of a multi-part post. For part one, click here , for part two, click here ) On the last leg of our roadtrip, we left Greenville for Clarksdale, in search of barbecue and music - we found both. We dined at the famous Abe's, right at the corner of 49 and 61, indulging in sweet tea, pulled pork, and cole slaw that lived up to its reputation: After wandering around Clarksdale, a town making its comeback on [...]
The Jack and Jills could be described as a band in flux. Born from the ashes of previous ensembles, the band spends its time jockeying between New York and St. Louis, installing new members to replace those who will spend the summer elsewhere. Add to this the band's animated on-stage bobbing and the reciprocal head nods and toe taps they elicit from their audience, and movement and variation are the name of the Jack and Jills' game. It's easy to attribute the band's animation to youthful innocence—the band is only four months old and several of [...]
Double Dragons are a duo from Exeter, New Hampshire, composed of Peter James and Josh Picard, childhood neighbors. Starting as a crude Hella tribute band, DD has evolved into a noisy and technical (but still concise) band that hasn't had alot of opportunity to play live due to its members being in different states. But when they do play live, DD is wonderfully true to the recordings. "Four" is the most popular track, managing to still be catchy despite its machine gun flurry of scales and snare rolls. Most DD tracks manage this same feat, making the [...]
Hi friends, I want to apologize for the lack of updates lately. For the first time in the 'Drome's history, it's because I'm behind in writing, not behind in finding awesome bands to write up. The reasons for this, however, are good ones. I'm working hard to establish a sustainable promotions and consulting company with an associated who I met in my Calabash days, Erich Ludwig. For our first set of promotions, we have the honor of working for Boban Markovic , a Serbian master, who not only influenced Beruit to no end, but is playing at [...]
Dinowalrus is a band that somehow lives up to its name. A three piece, their music finds freshness in its combination of 80s rock, punk, and drone, which is fairly astounding considering their locale, Brooklyn. To keep it even fresher, the band drastically mixes up instrumentation live. DW uses all the fun new stuff (sampler, Theremin, etc.) in their tunes pretty convincingly, and reports their ownership of a "1983 Roland analogue synth named 'Marc Bolan'". The band has played with some underground hotshots; Titus Andronicus, Michael Jordan, and Ringo Deathstarr to name just a few. [...]
A federal court judge ruled on Friday that selling promotional CDs, even when they're marked "not for resale" by the label, is legal. The judge rightly affirmed the fact that a company can't throw a restriction on a product to prevent the first-sale doctrine; that is, that once one assumes ownership of a product, that person may do with it what they please. Obviously a big victory for the consumer, it's hard to ignore what this means for the future of the CD. Selling CDs has already become a joke… last year, Wired pointed out that [...]
Lady Lovelace and the Calculator Death Machine , the duo now turned three piece, are about to release their new album Music for Two Musicians . David Kant, singer and multi-instrumentalist, tells me that the new project is "one large piece. So, in that sense, it's not really an album at all. The album is divided into sections where new ideas emerge and where we thought track breaks would be convenient." Performing live, Lady Lovelace is a surprisingly dense experience, showcasing Charysse Redwood's hard hitting drum beats and percussion behind Kant's frantic sampling, saxophone playing, and guitar [...]
What a shame this is so short! But I bet it'll whet your appetite as much as it whets mine.
After rejecting yet another talented and unheard band because that little box on their MySpace profile had a label name in it, The Hippodrome will now officially accept musicians for feature consideration who are signed to a label. Before you file The Hippodrome under the "generic mp3 blog" header in your reader, consider this: even though we're now accepting "signed" bands, the focus on unknown and previously unpromoted musicians will now by stronger than ever. This is because, as many of you have pointed out, being "signed" means almost nothing in this day and age. We feel that [...]
Rarely in indie-pop do you see an artist using their name as the band. That appears to have disappeared long ago in the early to mid 1990s. But, with artists like Shawn Fogel rising up, it may be making a comeback. But wait! Jeremy Sparrow is not in the band. Is it a made-up name? Or is it a moniker taken from a novel, as that of Harper Lee? Jeremy Sparrow is a made up name and a fairly new discovery. The band messaged me several… err… months ago about writing a little feature [...]
The Hippodrome
Lana Del Rey - Without You (Kill Paris Remix) [Dubstep]
Miike Snow - “Paddling Out” Jacques Lu Cont Remix (MP3 Stream)
Iron & Wine and Patty Griffin
Download: James Blake Live Album (Unofficial)
Circo Voador anuncia shows de The Kooks, Foster The People, Friendly Fires, Gogol Bordello e mais
