Believe that album cover for three minutes and twelve seconds. That’s how long it takes for Matthew Houck, the Alabama native better known as Phosphorescent, to finish the high-harmonic tilt of “Sun, Arise! (An Invocation, An Introduction)” and drain it into the aching, pained, sublime “Song for Zula.” If you’ve been following Houck’s exploits for [...]
For years, one of my rituals when hitting up record stores was a quick visit to the Lee Hazlewood section - alternately located, depending of the shop, in 'country', 'rock', or the most perplexing, 'oldies'. You could occasionally find old, beaten down, used vinyl or foreign-pressed (often shoddily produced) import CDs. Other than that, locating [...]
Jerry Williams Jr. didn’t adopt the handle “Swamp Dogg” in the early ‘70s in order to confuse, obfuscate, or mislead anyone. To hear the man tell it, he took on the name because it was imperative to do so. “It was born out of a necessity, to find myself, my identity,” the 80-year-old singer says [...]
Even though Cocksucker Blues, Robert Frank's legendary film of the Rolling Stones circa 1972, is routinely referred to as a "documentary," that's not quite accurate. Frank himself tips his hand right in the opening moments: "Except for the musical numbers the events depicted in this are fictitious. No representation of actual persons and events is [...]
If we've learned anything from the music of Joy Division and The Smiths, it's that the good people of Manchester, England, can handle bleak, uncompromising music. They were certainly given a bracing shot of it on this autumn night in 1973, as Neil Young opened a seven-date tour of the UK. With the Eagles opening [...]
(Album artwork: Does it indeed affect our listening experience, and if so, how? Scratch the Surface takes a look at particularly interesting and/or exceptional cover art choices.) I got into Nanci Griffith when I was in high school, but I didn't talk about it with anyone much. Loving Nanci was kind of like my love [...]
“We can do that one more time” someone faintly says in final third of “Blinded.” So is the imprecise nature of the entire Holy Hive EP. They’d be demos if there were anything to add; instead, any impreciseness is as welcome an addition as any of its inherent elements. Joseph Hein doesn’t mince words. “Don’t [...]
Our fiesta is going down Wednesday night, March 13th at Hype Hotel – 301 Brazos Street (3rd and San Jacinto). Come hang. Free booze. Follow @aquadrunkard and @hypem for details per possible day-wristband invites. 8:00 Twin Peaks 8:45 Calvin Love 9:30 The Orwells 10:15 Phosphorescent 11:00 Foxygen 12:00 Jim James DJ Sets: Mondo Boys Lineup: [...]
Our weekly two hour show on SIRIUS/XMU, channel 35, can be heard twice every Friday – Noon EST with an encore broadcast at Midnight EST. SIRIUS 285: Jean Michel Bernard – Generique Stephane ++ Alex Chilton - Boogie Shoes ++ Devo - Uncontrollable Urge ++ X - The Once Over Twice ++ Mikal Cronin - [...]
It's hard to talk about North Carolina's musical legacy - or even indie rock in general - without mentioning Chris Stamey. As a founding member of the dB's, Stamey often played the chaotic, challenging flip-side to Peter Holsapple's shining pop and their music was all the better for it. After leaving the band following their [...]
(Volume 16 of Clifton’s Corner. Every other week on the blog Clifton Weaver, aka DJ Soft Touch, shares some of his favorite spins, old and new, in the worlds of soul, r&b, funk, psych and beyond.) It’s been a while since the last Clifton’s Corner post. I’m truly sorry for the long wait but as [...]
The Tompkins Square label has been digging deep into the uncharted regions of the Takoma School for more than a decade now, emerging on a regular basis with previously impossible-to-find gems from such obscure guitarists as Harry Taussig, Mark Fosson and Peter Walker. At this late date, you might assume the bottom of the barrel [...]
In a recent interview with the Village Voice, Endless Boogie’s Paul Major credits the band’s former bassist with inventing the credo “When you get there, you gotta stay there.” Given their fifteen-year run of making good on their moniker, this slogan should be emblazoned on the Endless Boogie family crest. With the brand new double [...]
Latest dispatch from Atlanta's Carnivores, featuring Bradford Cox. Culled from the sessions from the band's forthcoming LP, Second Impulse, due out in June. MP3: Carnivores :: Pillow Talk (featuring Bradford Cox)
Our weekly two hour show on SIRIUS/XMU, channel 35, can be heard twice every Friday – Noon EST with an encore broadcast at Midnight EST. SIRIUS 284: Jean Michel Bernard – Generique Stephane ++ Father John Misty & Phosphorescent - I Would Love You ++ Phosphorescent - Song For Zula ++ Sandro Perri - Changes [...]
(We originally shared this session in January 2011 shortly after Trish Keenan's passing. I re-aired the set last month on the radio show. As promised, here it is, re-upped, after the jump.) If you never had the pleasure of seeing Broadcast on tour, particularly in their early years with keyboardist Roj Stevens and guitarist Tim [...]
How do you imprint a drum machine with your own personality? Martin Rev, one half of the groundbreaking NYC synth duo Suicide, knows the secret. From the very first few seconds of the instrumentalist's 1980 self-titled solo debut, you know it's him - that slightly sinister Rhythm Ace snap-hiss is as distinctive as a Jimmy [...]
There are plenty of problems with the modern era of music making, but technology can sometimes be a splendid thing. How else would a group of transatlantic talents from such far-flung locales as Colorado, Texas and the UK be able to come together to form Distant Correspondent? The aptly-named collective will undoubtedly gain attention as [...]
Uh huh, it's almost that time of year again, so let's do this. Our fiesta is going down Wednesday night, March 13th at Hype Hotel – 1527 Sixth Street. Come hang. Free booze. DJ Sets: Mondo Boys - Set times to come. See you in Texas. Lineup: Jim James ++ Phosphorescent ++ Foxygen ++ The [...]
While Impossible Truth may only be William Tyler's second solo album, chances are you're familar this Nashville-based guitarist. For more than a decade, he's been the go-to six-string stylist for such heavyweights as Lambchop and Silver Jews. Despite (or perhaps as a result of?) having studied under Kurt Wagner and David Berman, two of the [...]
An Aquarium Drunkard
Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros
The Weeknd - Kiss Land
Franz Ferdinand - Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action - Album Trailer
She & Him- I Could've Been Your Girl
Action Bronson - "Strictly 4 My Jeeps" (Official Video)
Kanye West - New Slaves
Kendrick Lamar & Black Hippy Remix Rick Ross’ “U.O.E.N.O.”
MC Melodee x Cookin Soul – Think Twice [Video]
NSFW: Miley Cyrus shows off her BANGIN TANKINI BOD!
