ARMS - "Glass Harmonica" (New Song/Video)

Miracles Of Modern Science (Kickstarter Project)

I've been looking forward to a debut LP from Miracles Of Modern Science for a while now.  They have a kickstarter account set up to fund their first record and currently have 12,250 dollars of the needed 15,000.  I really hope you can support this band as they have 8 days to raise the remaining 3,000 or they lose it all. Check out their pitch video and if you like what you hear help them reach their goal.

MOMS Kickstarter 

Track Of The Day: Lubec - "Your Magic Wand"

 Lubec - "Your Magic Wand"

Lubec - Nothing is Enough

Released: 1/18/11

WLFY's Top Ten Music Blogs Of 2010

Great taste with the added value of exploring a wide range of music from Hip-Hop to Pop.  

WEBSITE

TWITTER

The best destination online for the softer side of music.  Slowcoustic is constantly finding new talent in the world of folk/singer songwriter esq music.  If you're looking for new acoustic music...this is the place.

WEBSITE

TWITTER

A massive amount of coverage and reviews leaves COS a daily must read.  In 2010 they dominated the festival reporting and had numerous excellent pieces of writing in their review section.

WEBSITE

TWITTER

                  

IGIF is notorious for their excellent taste and finding bands/artists that others fall in love with months after they discover them.  With throwing two of the best CMJ shows this year and announcing their own 7" label, its been a busy and amazing 2010 for IGIF.

WEBSITE

TWITTER

Tsururadio and WLFY have the same idea about music blogging which is centered around injecting a personal voice/personality into their connection with the music.  There isn't a more interesting character than Aaron who peppers his blog with amazing photos, long pieces of personal writing, and a love for vinyl that makes me a constant reader.

WEBSITE

TWITTER

 

A mainstay in the blogging world for years now, MOKB made a giant leap this year with a beautiful site redesign and consistent quality content.  Dodge also throws the best shows in his Indianapolis area, has his own radio show, record label, and has a great original content live video series called Laundromatinee.

WEBSITE

TWITTER

    

I can't name a blog that matches the taste in music we have here at WLFY more than Knox Road.  Simply posting a track isn't enough for this blog as the site is jam packed with insight on everything that is posted.

WEBSITE

TWITTER

When WLFY crowned Aquarium Drunkard the best music blog of 2009 I said Justin was the best music writer on the web.  This opinion hasn't changed.  Drunkard is unique in what they cover and the writing is nothing short of spectacular.  

WEBSITE

TWITTER

I can't comprehend how Anthony does what he does day in and day out.  The Needle Drop boasts a music blog, radio show, blog.tv show, and regular youtube channel where he reviews albums and tracks daily.  The output is insane and it's all quality.  The use of having a regular youtube show makes Anthony a character and is a pioneer of a new medium for music bloggers.  (Also check out the amazing Rock It Out Blog who is on the same youtube journey and pumping out amazing original content daily)  Anthony is the hardest working music blogger as he claims and his hard work is appreciated.  

WEBSITE

TWITTER

Largehearted Boy takes home top honors this year because it's simply the best music resource on the web.  With daily mp3's, albums release listings with legal mp3s, and a collection of the best music related links from around the Internet, LB can't be ignored as a powerhouse of information.  Even now the site is collecting a long list of 2010 music lists which is unmatched.  Like The Needle Drop, I have no idea how LB gets all this done, day after day.  If you're a casual music blog reader, you could just read LB and be satisfied as the blog is basically an extension of all the best content that other bloggers and bands create.  There wasn't a second of hesitation in naming LB our favorite blog of 2010.

WEBSITE

TWITTER

Dan Deacon's Top 10 Albums Of 2010

Dan Deacon just released his top 10 albums of 2010 on Facebook.  What a weird world we live in.  Here are his picks:

1. Future Islands: In Evening Air

2. Dope Body: Saturday

3. Womme: Rog

4. Lower Dens: Twin-Hand Movement

5. Height with Friends Bed of Seeds

6. Daniel HIggs: Say God

7. Charanjit Singh: Ten Ragas To A Disco Beat (reissue)

8. Instant Coffee: Instant Coffee!

9. Omar Souleyman: Jazeera Nights

10. Salamander Wool: Lunarsophic Somnambulist

Olof Arnalds (Daytrotter Session)

Daytrotter continues its amazing taste in music and proves once again why it has to be considered one of the best websites for fans of sound.  Check out this wonderful session with the enchanting Olof Arnalds.

Olof Arnalds Daytrotter Session

Marissa Nadler - "The Sun Always Reminds Me Of You" (MUSIC VIDEO)

Thanks to GVB for the scoop

Arlo Guthrie - "Alice's Restaurant"

Over at Aquarium Drunkard, they pay tribute to the greatest Thanksgiving song in the world. Arlo Guthrie's "Alice's Restaurant."

Happy Thanksgiving, all!

Atlas Sound - Bedroom Databank Vol. 3

The prolific Mr. Cox keeps on giving. Today it's the release of his third volume of demos in as many days. Get it here.

Active Child - "I'm In Your Church At Night (MUSIC VIDEO)

Destroyer - "Chinatown"

In his latest releases (Bay of Pigs & Archer on the Beach) ultra-erudite Dan Bejar, AKA guy behind Destroyer, has been experimenting with sonic scapes, long droning affairs that seep into the subconscious right by those repressed feelings about what you'd do if you ever found that guy who seduced your ex-wife. But, I digress. "Chinatown" the taste of Destroyer's forthcoming Kaputt marks a return to melody in a way that's almost but not quite totally ironic -- see saxophones sliding and the electronic orchestration. But like most things Bejar does, it manages to give voice to that thing that you can't quite deal with yet.

Destroyer - "Chinatown"

Download Atlas Sound's Bedroom Databank Vols 1 & 2

That crazy Bradford Cox he's giving out Atlas Sound albums for free! And they're good! Each one seems to be a set of bedroom recordings vol. 1 includes covers of Kurt Vile and Bob Dylan. Even if you download them, both albums still contain that "new album smell" and Bradford Cox spell.

Get 'em here: Vol. 1, Vol. 2.

Sophie Madeline - "The Rhythm You Started"

On Nov. 30, pledgers to Sophie will get the new album, a limited run of CDs will follow on Dec. 3 and a proper release will happen next year.

Sufjan Stevens - "Too Much" (Music Video)

So after the appearance on Jimmy Fallon (see below) perhaps the whole fluorescent thing does make a little more sense given this music video for "Too Much" directed by Deborah Johnson.

Sufjan Stevens - "Too Much" (Live on Jimmy Fallon)

Sufjan Steven's network TV debut featured your favorite Carl Sandburg-quoting, fluorescent tape-happy, singer songwriter doing his best of Montreal impression with the wacky freakout and the weird costumes. It's a bit too much style over substance if you ask me, why not just do the flippin song? I mean, it's really good.

The Hidden Words

Alden Penner and Jamie Thompson were 2/3's of The Unicorns and have been playing music together under the band name The Hidden Words for months now.  It appears the band is in the process of recording a record, news I've been wanting to hear for a long time.  Here are some live performance videos that are labeled by The Walrus NP as five of The Hidden Words recorded songs.  Enjoy:

Track Of The Day: Steel Phantoms - "Evening Routine"

Patti Smith's "Just Kids" Wins National Book Award

The sublimely engrossing memoir Just Kids by punk goddess Patti Smith isn't just enriching for its first hand account of rendezvous and rubbing elbows with the likes of Andy Warhol, Television, The Velvet Underground, Sam Shepard, Allen Ginsberg, and Harry Smith in the cultural melange of NYC in the late 60s early 70s -- but for its incredibly honest and compassionate portrayal of a kid who didn't know how to do it (Smith) and a kid who was driven but outside of everything (Mapplethorpe).

If you haven't read it yet, what are you waiting for? It just won the National Book Award.

Sharon Van Etten World Tour

Anybody up for a trip to Japan?

Tour Dates:
Dec. 3, 2010 Nara, Japan – Nara Café Sample
Dec. 4, 2010 Kyoto, Japan – Kyoto Urbanguild
Dec. 5, 2010 Fukui, Japan – Turuga Pinon-Pinon
Dec. 7, 2010 Aichi, Japan – Nagoya JD Japon
Dec. 8, 2010 Kanagowa, Japan – Kamakura Café Goatee
Dec. 9, 2010 Tokyo, Japan – Shibuya, 7th Floor
Dec. 11, 2010 Nagano, Japan – Matsumoto Cafe
Dec. 12, 2010 Tokyo, Japan – FoundLand
Jan. 8, 2011 New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom
Jan. 19, 2011 New Haven, CT – BAR
Jan. 20, 2011 Philadelphia, PA – Johnny Brenda’s
Jan. 21, 2011 Columbus, OH – Wexner Performance Space at OSU
Jan. 22, 2011 Nashville, TN – The 5 Spot
Jan. 23, 2011 Asheville, NC – TBD
Feb. 15, 2011 Belgium, Brussels – Forest National w/The National
Feb. 22, 2011 Poland, Krakow – Studio w/The National
Feb. 24, 2011 Poland, Warsaw – Stodola w/The National
Feb. 25, 2011 Germany, Berlin – C-Halle w/The National
Feb. 26, 2011 Denmark, Aarhus – SCC w/The National
Feb. 28, 2011 Sweden, Lund – Färs & Frosta w/The National
Mar. 1, 2011 Sweden, Stockholm – Cirkus w/The National
Mar. 3, 2011 Finland, Helsinki – The House of Culture w/The National
Mar. 4, 2011 Finland, Helsinki – The House of Culture w/The National

Joanna Newsom, The Morning Benders, and Cults Get Placements

It used to be uncool for a band or artist to lend their music to a commercial, but now it's really the only way to make money in the failing music industry.

Joanna Newsom - LG Mobile Phones 

The Morning Benders - Reese's 

And Cults "Most Wanted" was featured on the season finale of Weeds.  Video to be posted when uploaded.  

Shark? - "You Ignore Me (Hey)

Off the Brooklyn Heat 2010 Comp

Track Of The Day: Bikini - "American Mourning"

Let's dance this Monday out.

Bikini - "American Mourning"

BIKINI 'RIPJDS'

Lefse Records Released Nov 9th, 2010

Sharon Van Etten Tiny Desk Concert

Who cares about a free Girl Talk Album when you have a Sharon Van Etten Tiny Desk Concert?

Cults Sign To Columbia Records

This is in no way official but if you head over to The Windish Agency website http://windishagency.com/artists/cults and click on label it goes to Columbia.

REVIEW: Kanye West - "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy"

Kanye West - "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy"

“Getting rid of a delusion makes us wiser than getting hold of a truth.” – Ludwig Borne

Delusion is scary.  It has the power to completely transform people and more importantly other people’s perceptions of said delusional person.  Kanye West is talented; I’m not going to argue that.  The problem is Kanye’s delusion is feeding the delusions of millions of fans.  Recently Kanye tweeted “I have decided to become the best rapper of all time! I put it on my things to do in this lifetime list!”  I have a pretty solid understanding of the history of hip-hop, but by no means am I an expert on the genre.  I cherish my Public Enemy, N.W.A, Beasties, Notorious, 2Pac, Outkast, and Nas records…and for my money it doesn’t get better than Tribe Called Quest, but sit me down next to a hip-hop historian and all their references will go over my head.  While I’m not an expert I find it impossible to even consider Mr. West in the top twenty best rappers of all time and mark up his statements as the best or wanting to be the best as delusional.  It’s this very delusion that shakes me a listener and ultimately turns me off to “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.”

Let’s start with the good.  For my money the production on “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” is in the top ten of the last five years for a hip-hop record.  The opening track “Dark Fantasy” is my favorite West track he’s ever created.  The complete control of the music and raw emotion displayed had me in awe.  “Dark Fantasy” has a sensitivity quality in its chorus that juxtaposes perfectly with the beat reverse beat that kicks in as a background for Kanye’s flow.  The song melodically accomplishes everything I expect from a great hip-hop track and even goes the extra yard to please.  The opening track proves that Kanye as a producer is one of the best.  My surprising excitement for “My Beautiful Dark Fantasy” grew with the second track “Gorgeous”.  I’m a sucker for electric guitar in hip-hop, much in the same way that I love Ron Carters bass in Tribe’s “The Low End Theory”.  Once again, Kanye is in complete control, showing his mastery of making all the right decisions when it comes to melody. Kanye displays his skills utilizing cut outs, silence, and letting the best sections of the song develop without ever making the tracks feel rushed. 

Then all hell breaks loose with “Power” and Kanye’s self-declared masterpiece comes crashing down.  Everything melodically interesting featured on tracks “Dark Fantasy” and “Gorgeous” is abandoned for gimmicks and self-indulgent decisions.  The hardest thing to do in any art form is too make a masterpiece seem like it was done with ease.  The tracks starting with “Power” drip with a feeling that West is trying too hard to gain approval.  Every gimmick that has ruined hip-hop as an art form is picked by West to make his tracks jam-packed with high-end mainstream production.  Auto-tune, really shallow call and response, and this horrible new trend of using mediocre R&B choruses to drive a song. 

Many critics have slapped near perfect or perfect scores on “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” and trust me, many more will roll out next week.  A perfect score in my mind means no missteps.  I have problems with a lot of the tracks on this record, but “Lost In The World” is unforgivably bad.  As a Bon Iver fan I was a little disappointed by his “Blood Bank EP” but in the context of “My Beautiful Dark Fantasy” the song seems grossly out of place.  A perfect album flows track into track and “Lost In The World” takes all the energy of the first eleven tracks and sucks all the air out.  It’s not a nice break or transitional piece like “All Of The Lights (Interlude)” it’s just a random flexing of Kanye’s muscles and ego where he thinks his stamp can make anything work.  It doesn’t. 

My biggest problem with Kanye West is his approach as a lyricist.  It’s funny to say, but I have the same gripe with West as I do with “comedy” writer Judd Apatow.  Both make art that seems like high art to those who just don’t know any better.  Yes, “Knocked Up” is a step up from the usual flatulence based comedies that the uneducated are used to watching, but it’s a small step filled with out of place pop-culture references and immature sexual situations crafted solely for a laugh not to enhance the story.  For some reason, West loves throwing out references in a similar fashion, without any meaning.  Some of the names used are Austin Powers, King(s) of Leon, Carl Winslow, and more.  They’re often used just to rhyme, but no meaning is expressed by using these names.  If you’ve ever tried to freestyle (and I have) and you’re horrible (I am) then you find yourself grasping to any word that rhymes…it makes no sense but it rhymes.  That might be fine for a drinking game of “9-9 bust a rhyme”, but from the self-proclaimed greatest rapper, nope, not cutting it.  Why does he do this?  People love it and I can’t tell you why.  When I listen to a song I like to have meaning, shoot me.  Next time you’re at a dance club and a song with a pop culture reference comes on, listen closely.  People will shout it out with pride.  Take West’s previous track “Gold Digger”.  People love yelling out Jennifer Lopez and Usher when those parts arise.  It’s the same thing that causes people to laugh at an Apatow reference even if they don’t understand the context of the joke.  Art that lasts forever says something, changes perspectives, or adds a new dimension to previous thoughts. Unfortunately, West is too busy randomly name checking and not spending enough time trying to find meaningful words to match his masterful production.

I actually feel sorry for West because people confuse being a musical genius with being smart as a person in other areas.  This is a common problem.  We all have our areas where we are talented and areas where we are weak.  The problem arises when someone is extremely talented in a specific area that features other skill sets.  Music, if there are vocals, demands both musical and writing skills.  As stated before, West understands music but as a writer of the actual words he falls short of being talented.  People listen to his music and hear the genius production and automatically leap to calling him a genius rapper.  Please listen closely, meaning, importance, everything that used to make hip-hop an art doesn’t exist in West’s lyrics.

In the end, the critique of “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” is simple.  Is it a good hip-hop album?  Yes, without a doubt.  I can spin this record and enjoy the production, laugh at a few corny choices made by West, but cut and dry it’s a good record that you should spend time with.  “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” is not a masterpiece, a groundbreaking work of art, or high art at all for that matter.  Enjoy the album for what it is and not for what Kanye and his loyal followers think it is.  Delusion can make people believe in something that’s not there and that’s Kanye’s ultimate power.

Kickstart Lohio's Music Video

Awhile back, we profiled Pittsburgh's Lohio and now like a lot of other startup bands, they've turned to Kickstarter to finance making their first music video:

We have the opportunity to work with industry-recognized film director Thom Glunt to make a music video for "Adelai", a track from our newest album Family Tree. His body of work is impressive and full of creativity: www.thomglunt.com.

No time to watch them all? Check out the demo reel for the fan on the go. We need to raise $4,000 to make the video and offset the costs of promoting the video once it is complete.

$5 gets you a download of the Family Tree EP, $15 gets you both the Lohio album and the Family Tree EP, $25 physical copies, etc.

Check it out and get involved here: http://kck.st/clYpO4

Get Hip Hatchet's "Men Who Share My Name" for only $2!

The band who nabbed the top artist spot in our top 11 of 2010, Hip Hatchet, are offering up their album "Men Who Share My Name" for only $2 via their bandcamp page.

If you like buying music...and you should...check out Zach's baby and brilliant idea: Buy This Track on Facebook.

Record Spotlight: Various Artists - "Take Me Home: A Tribute to John Denver"

It's unfortunate that John Denver gets the rap he's got -- AM Gold, Muppet-singing, Rocky Mountain-lovin, flying to his own death, and such. Because, in his heyday not only was Denver at the forefront of American music, he was also one helluva songwriter. There are moments in John Denver where he reaches almost Thoreauain ecstasy in his celebration of the wilder parts of the United States. And it's this passion and songwriting which are highlighted in Badman Record's "Take Me Home: A Tribute to John Denver" from 2003. (Get it here.)

For indie folkers the lineup is extraordinary: Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, Red House Painters, Low. It's also a little mind boggling, at first. After all, Denver's associated with that 70s (and 80s) sheen of over-production and bombast not the beguilingly simple arrangements used by Low or the contradicted coldness of BPB. However, it's in this juxtaposition that the original (the Denver) shines. The songs feel almost haunted at times. The manifesto "Poems, Prayers, and Promises" turns into self-assurance in the hands of Rachel Haden. And Billy's "Eagle and Hawk" -- which is a sonic glorification in Denver's original -- is turned, with Oldham's yodel/croon/moan of pain into a gut wrenching a capella song of lament. As such these tunes recreate Denver's originals and remake them in ways that make Denver's music come alive, again. Many of the standards from Denver's catalog aren't present (see "Rocky Mountain High," or "Country Roads Take Me Home") but those that are like "Annie's Song" are subtle and elegiac.

It's not surprising that the reoccurring name on this comp is Mark Kozelek (the genius behind Red House Painters and Sun Kil Moon). Kolzelek's unique musical perspective seems shaped by Denver and his slow-burning voice is almost an inversion of Denver's trademark tenor. Kozelek, like everyone else on this album, knows how to take it slow and how to let Denver keep speaking for himself.

Akron/Family Teaser Vid

The album's called S/T II: The Cosmic Birth and Journey of Shinju TNT and it hits Feb. 8. Because it's the Akron/Family, it's trippy.

AKAK from Secretly Jag on Vimeo.

The 11 Best New Bands/Artists Of 2010

Some of these bands/artists might have started in 2009, or had a 7" five years ago...the point is, these are the 11 best bands that I first heard in 2010.  Please drop a comment with a few new bands/artists that you've been enjoying in 2010.

11.) Baths 

The one-man show from California impressed with the debut LP, “Cerulean” which is packed to the brim with some of the best upbeat music I’ve heard in 2010.  My skepticism of how it would translate live was quickly put aside after two wonderful performances at CMJ.  

Lovely Bloodflow from BATHS on Vimeo.

10.) SOARS 

The creators of some of the most visual soundscapes you can ever imagine.  Their debut S/T album features a maze of sound that traps you in an abandoned industrial world, each instrument taking the listener further into desolation.  There is great beauty in the darkness.

09.) Family Trees 

“Dream Talkin” is easily in my top ten favorite tracks of 2010.  With the release of their 7” on Father/Daughter Records, Family Trees quickly grabbed a lot of attention for their softer tunes that paint beautiful pictures of serene nature and a better time.  I personally feel their music could easily be a backdrop to David Lynch’s “Blue Velvet”.  Everything seems happy on the surface, but underneath it all something else lurks. 

08.) Radical Dads 

Robbie Guertin might just be one of the most important indie musicians post 2003.  His involvement in three amazing projects (Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Uninhabitable Mansions, and now Radical Dads) means he’s pitching a perfect game. Front woman Lindsay Baker takes their live show to a new level with her amazing energy and enchanting way about her.  Hank is definitely smitten.  The music is everything that I used to love about indie rock and quite frankly can't find anymore.  If you were a fan of the early 2000 indie rock scene then Radical Dads are for you. 

07.) Cheyenne Marie Mize 

Mize has been a regular fixture in the Louisville scene for years working with every artist worth knowing in the Derby City.  With her debut LP, Mize’s talent becomes clear quickly.  Part bluegrass, part folk, part something slightly askew and never heard before, Mize is nothing short of one of the most important original voices of 2010.

06.) Slow Animal 

They’re loud.  They’re good.  With each song clocking in under three minutes, Slow Animal are bank robbers of sound and each track is a smash and grab job.  Distortion galore, these New Jersey boys find a way to make noise feel like pop without losing any edge.  

    

05.) The Pass 

Easily the most fun band of 2010.  They write great electro pop and don’t apologize for it.  High energy shows always turn into fun loving dance parties.  Very few people know that most of the members of The Pass have jazz backgrounds and have a talent as musicians that very few other 2010 newcomers can match. Their debut LP “BURST” shows they have one goal: to make you dance.

04.) Sunglasses 

Just watch this video and join me:

03.) Gobble Gobble 

The best live band I’ve seen in three years.  It’s the new Dan Deacon +3 and that’s one hell of a party.

02.) Cults

You don’t know anything about Cults.  Sure they hit blogger buzz gold with the track “Go Outside”.  Then they released “OMG” which didn’t hit me in the same way.  So they’re 1/2…why are they number two on this list?  After hearing the new tracks live I can rest easy in claiming that their debut LP will sweep everyone off their feet.  The tracks are brilliant, just brilliant.  Bobby Vinton and Lesley Gore with an updated feel.  Get your ears ready for 2011, the Cults debut LP is coming for you.

01.) Hip Hatchet

There was a month where I had to stop listening to Hip Hatchets LP “Men Who Share My Name”.  I would listen and get pissed off that Philippe Bronchtein (Hip Hatchet) wasn’t a household name.  I have a very sacred list of singer/songwriter names: Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits, Elliott Smith, Nick Drake, Vashti Bunyan, Neko Case, and David Berman.  What these musicians have in common and why they’re in a league of their own is because they’re not just musicians, they’re also poets.  If we lost every melody, guitar strum, recorded piece…there would still be the most enchanting poetry I’ve ever read.  This will sound like a huge claim, but Hip Hatchet could one day be in that group.  His lyrics are masterful and I can easily see him becoming the most important singer/songwriter of this decade.  Oh, and how is this for sad, his record is for sale on bandcamp…for two dollars.  Go buy one of the best albums of 2010 and invest some time into Hip Hatchet, WLFY’s favorite new musical discovery of 2010.

BUY THIS: Gobble Gobble - "Wrinklecarver" 7"

ZACH THAT:

Gobble Gobble is the next big thing, nobody can stop them.  Today they've announced a super limited 7" for their high energy dance track "Wrinklecarver".  If you live in the US, after shipping it's going to set you back nine dollars, a bit steep for a 7".  BUT...only 200 of these babies will be pressed.  You can't miss this opportunity to own all that early rare wax that you kick yourself years later for not shelling out for.

BUY NOW

Amazing Craigslist Call for a Band

If you wrote the following, email us and let us know how the wedding was:

Subject:* Best Craig's list ad ever (real)

*Terrible band needed for sham of a wedding. 11/6. No pay (any takers?)*

As the musician in our family, my Shylock of a half-brother and his
parsimonious fiance have passed off to me the job of finding a band
for their wedding. I love the kid, but his unique brand of expectant
coercion and astonishingly consistent lack of judgment have left me
with no recourse but to literally give him what he wants, a band
that can "tear up Skynyrd, and won't cost nothin'". Since they think
music is spontaneously generated via voodoo magic by assemblies of
self-promoting philanthropists, I am now on a quest to find the best
working band in Chicago interested in "doing it for the exposure".

If you are a serious musician that values your craft and earns a
living from performance, you're probably thinking "Fuck you. Do you
ask your accountant to do your taxes for the exposure?". You are not
who I am looking for. Thanks for looking.
If however, you and your unemployable band of pothead hobbyists are
enticed by the prospect of a free open bar stocked with the finest
of suburban banquet hall well-liquor and an opportunity to run a
train on the most whorish collection of self-entitled bridesmaids
this side of a Sex In The City marathon, please contact me. There's
probably dinner in it for you too, if the starched vagina of a
"wedding planner" (bride's bff) can get her 3rd rung caterer to
leave a few sandwiches in a storage closet for you at some point in
the evening.

What I need from the band:
I don't care if you are an original Icelandic thrash-raga act
featuring steam calliope and backwardsArmageddon poetry, but I need
you to be able to train wreck your way through a few requests.

Don't Stop Believing. You provide the high notes, we'll provide the
smell of wine and cheap perfume.

Free Bird. Go nuts with the solo. Really. If this evening was a
never-ending cascade of sonic punishment hailing down on Tom at
blaringly inconsiderate volumes, it would only serve as apropos
karmic revenge for the afternoons I've spent listening to Jillian
chatter about OHMYGODIDON'TCAREWHAT.

Macarena/Electric Slide/Chicken Dance. It doesn't matter which one
you play, but there has never been a classy party where one these
songs has made an appearance. This will not be a classy party.

Do Not Play: Jessie's Girl. I used to play weddings, and if I have
to hear this song one more time, I'm going to fucking cut someone.

They said they don't have any preference's for attire, so I'll take
that to mean you're ok in a threadbareMegadeth shirt and black jeans.

I will provide the PA (the band and sound system are my wedding
present to them).
This is not a joke. Please shoot me an email if this sounds like
something you might be interested in.

Steve Martin - "Atheists Don't Have No Songs"

If you haven't seen legend Steve Martin's genius atheist spiritual "Atheists Don't Have No Songs" on Austin City Limits-- you're in luck, cuz we got it for ya.

"The 'he' is always lowercase"

ARMS - "Heat and Hot Water" (Passion Pit Remix)

An already amazing song gets the Passion Pit treatment.

ARMS - "Heat and Hot Water" (Passion Pit Remix)

ARMS - "Heat and Hot Water

ARMS - 2010 Tour Dates

Nov 8 2010 - Brooklyn Bowl Brooklyn, NY 

Nov 11 2010 - The Living Room (TG SOLO) New York, NY

(via Brooklyn Vegan)

VIDEO REVIEW: LCD Soundsystem's "Pow Pow"

MTV Shows

LCD Soundsystem - "Pow Pow"

Director - David Ayer

The music video for LCD Soundsystem’s track “Pow Pow” can be described with one word: LAZY.  The entire narrative is based around ambiguity, a tool that most filmmakers use to cover up the fact that they have no real perspective, no unique vision.  Keeping the narrative open allows for the viewer to guess at the intentions of the filmmaker and with no real answers to the questions proposed, the creator can’t be wrong. 

There are four types of music videos.  Narrative, performance based, animation/sound matching, and found footage.  Now, there can be combinations of all four, but it’s important to note that all four will be handled differently when being reviewed.  While performance, sound matching, and found footage are based solely on how the visuals match the music, a narrative music video has to be taken in two parts of analysis: what the visuals do to enhance the song and what the meaning of the story expresses about the music.

If you see enough experimental cinema, those who are full of bullshit become quickly exposed.  The eye for experimental bullshit has to be developed over years and years of watching the masters of the Avant-garde, be it Bunuel and Dali’s Un chien andalou or the works of David Lynch.  I can’t possibly change your interpretation of visual narratives or download all the experimental masterpieces into your head, but I will try to break down why this video fails.

A narrative without a black/white meaning relies on imagery to develop individual analysis in the mind of the viewer.  The masters of experimental cinema create visuals that don’t allow for immediacy; rather the image lingers and develops meaning long after the piece of art has been consumed.  “Pow Pow” relies on immediate images that link scene to scene.  At the very basic level there is sudden realization.  A girl goes around the city flashing magic symbols at “bad guys” and then later traps them in a room representing a location not of the real world.  We have a main character, the woman; we understand her action, to entrap these men with her magic power.  The problem is that there is nothing left to discover which baffles since the narrative is open ended.  Yes, there can be discussion on what it all means, but after watching the music video numerous times, there is no more discovery in the visuals. 

You can freeze the neon blue symbols and find no meaning.  The filmmaker uses first and last shot repetition and the only change is the addition of brass knuckles, which means nothing.  The costume choices of the “other world” show a few references to government officials or war medals, adding nothing.  The point is that an image in the context of experimental film should never be a dead end, rather a maze that just keeps going.  A simple example of successful techniques in experimental cinema is color mapping.  Lynch uses red lamps throughout Mullholland Drive in scenes dealing with specific emotional points in the narrative that opens up a world of interpretation and mental cues to the meaning.  The “Pow Pow” video uses straightforward suggestions like fire to immediately cue up thoughts of evil.  It’s too easy.  The filmmaker failed by not taking a side.  Either make an experimental film that has a closed narrative or actually make choices and guide the viewer. 

The only redeeming quality of this video is a small touch that I enjoyed.  The woman in the video makes small reactions and has very specific actions that cues that she is not of this world.  Be it her eyes when she walks into the second club or the way she touches certain objects, it’s clear that this is all new to her.  Details like this go a long way in developing characters, especially when there isn’t the luxury of having dialogue.

The video tries it’s hardest to seem deep shot after shot.  From the quote: “At midnight she came to collect the souls of the wicked men” to the addition of brass knuckles at the end.  It’s all bullshit my friends, sweet and simple.  The best example of this is how desperately hard the filmmaker tried to make the dream world scene look like the Black Lodge from Twin Peaks. From the checkered floor to the red curtains, influence bleeds into complete rip off.  The filmmaker painted this music video with a heavy brush but had no clue what he was painting.

D

The Henry Clay People - "Slow Burn" (LiveBuzz Session)