I promise not to constantly fill up this site with videos from Pitchfork's new .tv site , but today's airing of Bill Callahan 's rooftop set seemed notable, and it is worth noting how well put together the site is - collecting videos along with exclusive live sets, interviews and occasional documentaries (The Pixies 2 weeks ago was great). I must admit that the Luddite in me only worries that the video side of music helps established acts and shuts out the unknowns... But it is very well thought out and programmed: it loads [...]
The last time Wilderness came through L.A., they headlined a show that was under-attended and inexcusably short. I don't remember exactly how few songs they played, but it was a 30 minute or so set, and my disappointment with their lack of stamina overshadowed what was otherwise a pretty engaging show. They played almost entirely songs off of their recent release at the time, Vessel States , but based on what appeared to be a disdain for the L.A. audience (combined with their relative silence since), I got the impression that it would be the first [...]
Apparently, I'm not the only one who thinks that today's "avant-garde" is tomorrow's Kenny G. And this is not to say that I have a problem with our modern-day adult contemporary on the face. Actually, I think it's great that more people are listening to indie rock - which I often think of as being better, more artful music (Sufjan would exemplify that). And while I find a some of these bands boring (Great Northern, I'm looking at you), I still think they make decent music - just not music that I especially want to give my [...]
Where's the empty dance floor? We own those Tuesday nights. Raise my glass for a cheer; this time all the tears came out. I'm starting this one off casually with Brian Eno 's "The Big Ship," which has been forever changed for me since the song was featured in the intro/build-up of Adam Curtis ' The Power Of Nightmares BBC series. If you haven't seen it and have never really understood what the hell is going on in the world, take some time and let him connect the dots for [...]
I don't think I've read a single review of Zero Star that doesn't note that he is from Columbus, Ohio, or how his talent somehow relates to fellow Columbus hip-hop artists Copywrite, Illogic, Rjd2 & Blueprint. It's not entirely unwarranted; Columbus hip-hop is a niche market in relation to other midwest cities, Chicago and Detroit... but Zero Star's location and musical lineage seem to be elements that overshadow his talented lyricism in a way disproportionate to upcoming rappers of other cities. One of Zero Star's strengths is his beat selection [...]
Among the many bands that WOXY was good enough to record in Austin during SxSW 2008 was Frightened Rabbit . Being that I'm counting the days until their 2nd album sees release (April 15), I was more than excited to hear a bunch of the new tracks from Midnight Organ Fight (in a convenient acoustic format). Below are the songs only; make sure to go to WOXY for the entire set along with an interview; in which Scott takes full ownership over the songs and threatens to kick his brother Grant [...]
I don't know if it comes off to anyone reading, but I obsess over the selections for these monthly mixes. Since my posting is pretty haphazard, it is often the only way I end up recommending music, and my aspirations for the mixes are always a lot more lofty than 10 tracks will really allow. But I like the constraint of being succinct. I was pretty sure this month was lining up to be a disaster. There are so many songs that have been building up in the backlog... Meanwhile there are all these new albums; I don't want the [...]
Apparently my 13th favorite song of last year was only a dry run on what will probably go on to be one of my favorites this year. Fat Cat just released a video of Frightened Rabbit's "Head Rolls Off," the first single for Midnight Organ Fight . The video is adorable, and while it isn't necessarily revolutionizing the world as we know it, I'd call entertaining a bunch of kindergarteners to be one of those "tiny changes to earth" that had me loving the song in the first place. : Frightened Rabbit - [...]
It's official: Jack Black is crazy funny. Freed and I had a lengthy argument over the point of Be Kind Rewind , and in the end I'm not really sure what we were arguing over. I think Freed liked the theoretical concept of 'sweding' : the act of redefining something through recontextualizing it ("putting 'you' into the thing you like"). I felt like the movie was a celebration of film; by doing impressions of other movies, they simultaneously celebrate and mock the originals. All in all it probably wouldn't have been an argument had drinks not been involved. [...]
Following up on the Dodos post , here's video courtesy of mp3.com , showing the way that they perform "Fools" live. I don't remember the trombone from their show in December , and I think it this performance could have been EQ'ed out a bit better, but it's still pretty ginchy.
Following up on the Dodos post , here's video courtesy of mp3.com , showing the way that they perform "Fools" live. I don't remember the trombone from their show in December , and I think it this performance could have been EQ'ed out a bit better, but it's still pretty ginchy.
At the beginning of the year I posted about Clear Tigers , a solid Brooklyn-based band that in my mind falls outside the mold, save, maybe, the Alec Ounsworth -like vocals. But the use of the synthesizer, the main source of melody on many of the tracks, is what has me coming back like pop stars to the crazy. I mean, the Philip Glass effect at the beginning of "Deathray" is calming enough that could fit the mood of a DeBeers commercial (certainly better than Cat Power did ). I think Glass [...]
There have been so many covers of Joy Division's posthumous hit, that I could probably post one cover each Valentine's Day and be sure that I run out before the covers did. I stumbled upon Honeyroot 's version recently, and wanted to share it with all you lovebirds and happy-to-your-self lonebirds. Have a good one, and lay off the chocolate... it'll make you sick. : Honeyroot - Love Will Tear Us Apart :
In light of this year's presidential campaign, I wanted to make a point about what has been labeled " the least original buzzword in campaign history ." Before the 'Super Tuesday' primaries, I had a interesting conversation with a friend, who derided Barack Obama's use of "Change" as a campaign slogan, noting that, "you can't own change." It seemed like after the Iowa caucuses, "change" became the Zeitgeist, repeated time and time again by the media, as well as within each candidate's speeches, even those running to continue along the country's current track. Some have duly noted [...]
I remember picking up a Shangri-Las discography in 1994, compiled and released a record label called Cherry Red Records, that claimed to be "by the fans, for the fans." Interested in the band after hearing covers by Superchunk and The Go-Go's, it seemed like luck that someone would release a career-encapsulating CD, complete with a tell-all biography that didn't spare contempt for the music-industry problems that sent the group back home to Queens. The disc went on to be re-released by a British company, RPM, but I thought there was something really special about getting a [...]
With releases this month from my favorite underrated bands, some February selections were inevitable. Dirty On Purpose 's new EP, Like Bees is great, a couple reworkings of early demos, the cover that they were playing on their first cross-country tour, and two new songs, one of which is featured here, "Audience In The Room." The other big news is the first track from Frightened Rabbit 's next LP, "The Modern Leper," which has been revamped from the original demo they had given away on various give-away EPs over the past couple years. My love of [...]
Holy shit , indeed. Not to let getting canceled in 2006 hold them back, new episode of Yacht Rock surfaced over the weekend. With many of the Michael McDonald tales already told, the focus is on Loggins, although there the blue-eyed soul singer and James Ingram join him in an epic battle against the 'mellow, but not smoothness' of Jimmy Buffet. And if that still isn't enough to sell you, there's Jason Lee as Kevin Bacon eating bacon. We can only hope that a trip on the highway is to follow. [...]
There's no denying the way that The Arcade Fire are push interaction through the internet releases of their music videos. The new video for " Black Mirror ," directed by Oliver Groulx & Tracy Maurice, isn't as interactive as the one Vincent Morisset did for " Neon Bible ," but is is just as artful. After the witty loading page, you can re-mix the track live, while the video plays. On my beat-up computer this causes a slight lag between the drums & vocals, but not so much that it takes away from the awesomeness of the idea, [...]
I guess I've just about resigned myself to the fact that this is a one-post-a-month site, at least for the time being, as well as the reality that freed isn't posting anything, ever. But I'm gonna keep doing the monthly mixes , and every now and then I'll feel inspired enough to do a quick posting. Right now, it's The Dodos , a 2-piece that I saw open for Les Savy Fav in December . They immediately made me think of a mix between Two Gallants and Rogue Wave, so when I found out that they were [...]
A couple days late but no worse for the wear, we're kicking off the year with Comet Gain 's ode to musical time capsules. I recently unearthed a bunch of awesome old mixtapes, mostly copies of ones I had made for others back in high school, as well as some hip-hop mix cd's I made for myself that carry no tracklisting and are simply labeled by number ("twelve" + "thirteen" to be exact). I love coming back to these and remembering bands that would otherwise fall by the wayside. Hopefully this month's mix draws on that. And though I'm [...]
hearsay
Princesse - Tell Me | MP3
Prince – Controversy (Mighty Mouse Re-Edit)
Beck - 'I Just Started Hating Some People Today' [Listen]
[LISTEN] Gotye (Passion Pit Remix)
Azealia Banks – ’1991′ & ‘Van Vouge’
