MP3: Shostakovich - Symphony No. 5 - Iv. Allegro Non Troppo by Bernstein & the NY Phil In 2008, the Brit music mag Gramaphone ranked the top-world orchestras with the help of critics and musicians. We could, of course, head to Amsterdam, Berlin, or Vienna to capture the best of the best, but our home turf is rich. Here's my take on performances that will bring the 2008-2009 season to a wondrous, raucous close. [...]
I contemplated whether or not to write this post as I kind of hate rehashes of old material. Mostly because that's one of the purported signs of a blog's decline. But fuck it, we've had a banner inaugural year and tons of shit needs to be highlighted. Below is just a smattering of our best/my favorite articles and coverage we've had in the past year. Of particular personal significance was my chance to interview one of my musical icons, Béla Fleck, breaking controversial first word on Whartscape logistics and getting press access for Bonnaroo. So check out some of [...]
Luckily, my editor is on in-between semester break. Otherwise, I'm sure he would be in T.A. mode and grade my late post accordingly... However, I dragged my feet somewhat deliberately. What's the point of a 2008 summation if you don't have at least a little critical distance between current time, and the past year? One doesn't write a book report until the book is actually finished. A conclusion about a hypothesis can't be reached until the experiment is actually completed. You don't say, "Wow, baby…that was some good [...]
Editor's Note: Each of the writers from Aural States was given free-reign to make an optional year-end post, filled with lists, oped, whining, whatever…this is what one came up with: 2008 has been a life-changing year for me in many ways, especially music. I remember being very intimidated by any genre that pushed experimental or noise and now it's what I live for. Every season, new styles come back around from previous decades: saddle shoes, bell-bottoms, and grungy flannel shirts. Our generation is the melting pot of the past. Can't we say the same [...]
Editor's Note: Each of the writers from Aural States was given free-reign to make an optional year-end post, filled with lists, oped, whining, whatever...this is what one came up with: 2008 is on the books, and since we celebrate the passing of the calendar year on a certain upcoming day just about a week after the Winter solstice, it's time to reflect on what has passed, to celebrate the good and make amends or at least clean the slate on what wasn't so good. 2008 threw us some [...]
Radio rip for now but you know the CDQ is coming. Far too much fuckery to try to reel off quotes. Skillz pretty much covered everything (except discussing his own album lol). Lord knows I forgot Shawntae was still OZ'ed up. Skillz - 2008 Wrap Up (Radio Rip) Props to Shake
In line with tradition, here is my unordered, incomplete list of awesome albums from 2008. Things seem a bit folk heavy for me. Interesting. Do share your thoughts. Baltimore Small Sur - We Live in Houses Made of Wood MP3: Small Sur - Roots A subtle beauty, a gentle giant of a release from a local treasure. Bob Keal is calling us all back to nature; it's a wondrous journey. [...]
To anyone out there who has read a rare post of mine, I want to take this opportunity to thank you for your readership and wonderful taste in music. For anyone out there who is wondering why I don't post more often, I discovered that it's because most of the music I listen to was released prior to 1973. I did finally discover Vampire Weekend this week, but I needed a lot of help. I would also be remiss if I did not thank Greg for his guiding vision and the great care he takes as an editor [...]
My cat gave me Videohippo's Unbeast the Leash for Christmas, I'm not sure if that's a statement about her sense of fulfillment in her life or not. Either way, it's now my soundtrack to Christmas. I'm sitting around, 3:30 on December 25th, still in my pajamas. I've eaten a disgusting amount of cinnamon buns in the last week, and I haven't shaven in three or four days. A little bit of me wants to die. Four cinnamon buns. FOUR. And it's perfect. This melancholy, slightly nostalgic music set to my yearly dose of Christmas nausea. [...]
You've seen them in your RSS readers all year long. You've heard them on Last.fm, MySpace, imeem, YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook. Some owe their entire careers solely to the "blogosphere". Yes, without the blogs and the right internet marketing schemes playing A&R behind their trendy tech-savvy rear-ends they would more than likely still be lurking message boards and sending "please listen to my demo" .mp3 emails into KOCH records. They got this shit mastered. Take a cue. Lists are always controversial.. and there will be some notable peeps left off. My advice if you want to make [...]
The experience of listening to music is just as important as the music itself. What can dampen that experience more than the stifling, conformist environment known as suburbia? Well, nothing, but here are five great songs from 2008 that you can listen to while you weep, The Best Songs To Resent Your Suburban Existence To . 1. Thieves Like Us – Drugs In My Body Your routine, school-centric life doesn't possess half the cool oozing from this jam by Thieves Like Us . Sure, you can do [...]
I was recently approached by The Bygone Bureau , an online journal of modern thought, to contribute to their Best Local Albums of 2008 wrap-up. Bloggers from Austin, Boston, Chicago, LA, NYC and Seattle all weighed in on their favorite albums of the past year by musicians hailng from their respective cities. Here is my contribution to the column and picks for The Best Local Albums of 2008: Chicago is in the throws of a musical conundrum. We're home [...]
I thought I would start off my obligatory, but still fun, Best of 2008 musings by taking a brief look back at some of the highlights we covered here at CreamTeam. While we didn't get things off and running until about March of this year, the staff was busting at the seams with pent-up postings. We kicked things off, appropriately enough, with a chopped and screwed Jacko remix courtesy of Marquis. Announced our birth to the world, by burning down the Liars Club. Fed you some WMC coverage and whole lot [...]
People keep saying 2008 was a shitty year for music. I'd argue it wasn't a stellar year for solid new releases from artists with established career longevity, but standout albums from new artists were in abundance. Here is the list of my Top Five Honorable Mentions of 2008 . They didn't quite make the Top 10 Best Albums of the Year , but definitely got their share of play from me: 1. Sam Sparro - Sam Sparro 2. Kleerup - [...]
DON'T DO DRUGS, DO BLOGS! Crystal Castles - Vanished (320 kbps)
Aural States
The Smoking Section
JumpTheTurnstyle
creamteam.tv
Watch: Trailer for Dave Grohl’s documentary, Sound City
Conchord On Composing Music For Muppets
R.I.P Whitney Houston
