PENETRATING THE VOID

and finally...

2010-02-23T00:01:00.001-05:00

Portishead - Chase The Tear from Mintonfilm on Vimeo.

FLYING LOTUS - COMPUTER FACE / PURE BEING

2010-02-22T23:57:00.001-05:00

ZOMGZOMGZOMGZOMGZOMGZOMGZOMG

JOANNA NEWSOM - GOOD INTENTIONS PAVING COMPANY

2010-02-22T23:47:00.003-05:00

Joanna Newsom makes what we here at the Void like to call Instant Classics. And boy is she beautiful. And quite possibly too fashionable to exist. I mean, she's not even crushable. Good thing there's still the music.

YAKISOBA

2010-02-22T11:20:00.002-05:00

Hey all, I just finished working on an album's worth of songs that I have now posted to a myspace page where you can all listen to and download them if you so desire. It's pretty "low-rent" as they say, but I'm pretty proud of the way these jams turned out. I hope you will enjoy them.

DAEDELUS - RIGHTEOUS FISTS OF HARMONY

2010-02-15T23:22:00.002-05:00

Daedelus "Righteous Fists of Harmony" from DestroyRockMusic Inc. on Vimeo.

Things this beautiful are being made every day. Doesn't that inspire you? (And this is just a preview.)

JOHN COLTRANE QUARTET - NAIMA

2010-02-15T23:02:00.001-05:00

Mend your mind from the frost hammer's blow with this, one of the most beautiful songs.

HIGH ON FIRE - FROST HAMMER

2010-02-15T23:01:00.002-05:00

I'm not really into metal any more, but I sure as shit am into this shit.

Mega Meltdown Jam: GEORGIA ANNE MULDROW

2010-01-01T18:52:00.002-05:00

Holy fuck. Listen to everything you can get your ears on by this lady and throw some love her way because she is defnitely the SHIT.

OH RAS!

2009-12-30T12:04:00.000-05:00

NIKOS

2009-12-25T11:00:00.004-05:00

Happy Christmas, Earthlings.

That is full; this is full. This fullness has been projected from that fullness. When this fullness merges in that fullness, all that remains is fullness.

OM PEACE PEACE PEACE!

JOSH DIBB/DEACON IN MALI

2009-12-22T16:24:00.005-05:00

Consider doing this, dear Voiders. It's really sweet, I think. I gave 'em some money and I already feel pretty good about it. Let's give a little back to Mother Afrika, not to mention Josh! Spread the word! Think of all the riptastic budding African musicians that will be helped by this, thereby insuring another few centuries (at least) of Awesome Tapes from Africa!

NASHVILLE, HERE I COME

2009-12-11T09:57:00.002-05:00

two great videos of two great songs from a great band from the place i'll be living for a while. i'll be glad to share a city with these dudes.

Not Music Related...

2009-12-10T16:16:00.001-05:00

...but it's music to my EYES

ELECTRIK RED - MUAH

2009-12-09T11:19:00.002-05:00

Hot ladies bangin Prince-y The-Dream jams? Four strong multiracial women/Usher back-up dancers singin about how we don't fuck them, they fuck us?

Sign me up. This is the group Destiny's Child wish they had been. Half the cuts on this album are stone cold, for sure. Go check it!

R.I.P. JACK ROSE

2009-12-08T14:25:00.003-05:00

Wow. This is unexpected and tragic. Peace to you, Jack, wherever you are. Your music will live on. If you've never heard Jack's music, please take a listen today and think of him. You won't regret it.

THE PSYCHEDELIC ALIENS

2009-12-08T13:48:00.002-05:00

Here's Frank from Voodoo Funk on this one:

"Needless to say that it's absolutely incredible: A perfect crossover of Garage Psych Rock and Afro Funk. Raw fuzz-wah-wah guitar, Vox organ, vocals with loads of reverb, huge drum break... it really is unreal! But better sit down first and have a cold beer ready. You'll need it."

What more do you need to know? Watch out for a re-issue of this amazing, amazing, amazing record soon on Academy Records.

God damn it I love Ethiopia

2009-12-08T13:12:00.001-05:00

Yeshimebet Dubale, a river of tears

Zone out with Kennedy Mengesha

Mega Monday Metro Maniac Jam #3: Dr. No's Ethiopium

2009-12-07T14:31:00.000-05:00

bam.

ARIEL PINK - GREY SUNSET

2009-12-04T15:25:00.002-05:00

Is this the greatest music video ever? I don't know. I'm just puttin it out there.

GET OFF THE COAST

2009-12-04T10:00:00.002-05:00

This blog is sick. All-day jams.

Mega Maniac Meltdown Jam(s) of the Week!! #2

2009-12-03T15:41:00.003-05:00

Looks like we've got two jamma lammas here for you listeners today. Enjoy.

Check that solo! Holy crap. Nice energy.

One of my high school favorites. Endless dance. Have a good week everybody.

FALL BE KIND

2009-11-25T10:18:00.005-05:00

Lately I've been feeling like I can't get through a whole CD. These are CDs that I love and hold a special place in my insides, wherever that may be, and still I can't seem to get into them lately. It's not a big deal, it happens pretty regularly. Still, it's kind of annoying when it happens.

Then this came out:

Listen to this amazing piece of amazingness here.

I know everyone is shitting themselves about this band. I am too, I have been for a while, and I don't feel bad about it. It's strange, I honestly don't remember the last time my favorite band in the world was in the Billboard Top 20. It's a pretty cool feeling. Whatever.

All I know is I'm moving to Nashville, TN in a few weeks. It's going to be awesome. I haven't moved somewhere new in quite a while, so I'm a little scared in a good way. Fall Be Kind perfectly describes the feeling of my life right now, and that's special. Not often does someone ask you "How are you?" and you're able to respond by saying, "Listen to this album." Thank you again, guys in Animal Collective. I owe you a bunch for this.

2009

2009-11-23T13:36:00.036-05:00

I know it's not over yet, but we like to keep it informal here at PTV. If that means that sometimes the walls of linear time have to be annihilated, so be it. This isn't a year-end list anyway--it's not a best list, or a ranking thing, and many of these records came out a while ago. The records are in the order I remember them. Some of them have appeared every year, and some will probably do so forever. It's just a list of what's been filling the Void over the past 12 months.

J Dilla - Donuts

Prince - Prince

Avey Tare & Panda Bear - Spirit They're Gone, Spirit They've Vanished

Dr. Strangeloop - Are We Lost Mammals Of An Approaching Transcendental Epoch?

Grouper - Dragging A Dead Deer Up A Hill

Luomo - Vocalcity

Neil Young - On The Beach/Discography

Caetano Veloso - In London

Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion

Boards of Canada - Music Has The Right To Children

Panda Bear - Person Pitch

Julian Casablancas - Phrazes For The Young

Girls - Album

S.E. Rogie - Dead Men Don't Smoke Marijuana

Daft Punk - Discovery

Hudson Mohawke - Butter

Dam-Funk - Toeachizown

Flying Lotus - Los Angeles

Pop Ambient 2001 (Kompakt)

Main Street Records - Round One To Round Five

Steve Spacek - Space Shift

King Tubby - The Essential King Tubby

Julian Lynch - Orange You Glad

Panda Bear - Live At ZDB

Black Sabbath - Vol. 4

Baroness - Blue Record

Real Estate - Real Estate

Various Artists - Zamb!ance

New Feature: Mental Meltdown Jam of the Week!

2009-11-23T11:28:00.003-05:00

Hey Everybody! I'm back now, but still busy/lazy, so my two sides got together and had a brainchild:

MENTAL MELTDOWN JAM OF THE WEEK!

Seasoned readers will be reminded of a previous (and somewhat failed) feature known as MAKEOUT JAM OF THE WEEK--a great idea, but perhaps too soon born. We're gonna try again, this time with a little special sauce.

Without further ado, here's this week's mental meltdown jam:

Stay high, ladies and gentlemen.

Austin Peralta - "Cecilia"

2009-11-03T11:44:00.001-05:00

Couldn't resist posting this one. Austin Peralta's album Endless Planets will be out on the illustrious/alwaysawesome Brainfeeder label sometime early next year.

Austin Peralta - Cecilia (strangeloop underwater mix) from Dr. StrangeLoop on Vimeo.

Busy Breakin

2009-10-19T09:46:00.004-04:00

Hey readers. Sorry to have to do this, but things are super busy lately and I'm not sure when or how often I'll be posting on this guy in the future. Trying to get a musical project off the ground (it's startin to hover), workin overtime to pay those bills, plus I'm doing a little writing for Filter magazine these days. Add to that sleeping and trying to do other "life" things and you've got no blogging energy.

So thanks for reading and see ya later!

Peace

Loren

SUFJAN STEVENS - "THERE'S TOO MUCH LOVE"

2009-09-28T14:45:00.003-04:00

Why. Why is this man so good.

SUNNO))) @ SONAR

2009-09-24T15:32:00.003-04:00

Laser Gloves

Laser Helmet

I love these guys.

WHERE IT'S AT

2009-09-24T10:22:00.002-04:00

Underwater peoples have two turntables and at least one microphone covered in magic elf glitter. Just finished listening to their Summertime Showcase CD and you should go get one. You can order one online or go to Red Onion Records on 18th between T and U NW--they should have some CDs there.

Seriously this CD is $4.50 and worth at least 8 times that price. Every song is good. Treat yourself.

Family Portrait - Mega Secrets

Also, definitely check out Andrew Cedermark. This record label is blowing my mind.

TUPPERWARE

2009-09-23T13:42:00.003-04:00

Max Doyle: "This is the Tupperware that Al from Om kept all his weed in. It was full of weed. You can smell it if you want. It was in here for, like, three years."

Full article here.

LILY ALLEN AND THE ENDLESS PORCUPINE QUILL-STREWN MAGIC CARPET RIDE OF FILE SHARING

2009-09-22T12:41:00.028-04:00

So Lily Allen has started a blog called "It's Not Alright", in which she and others try to convince the world the file sharing is bad and that we should be ashamed of ourselves. The blog champions as its main concern the fact that young up-and-comers don't stand a chance to "hit it big" or pay back their bills in the face of file sharing, since their income will be eliminated. Really, this is a royalties issue (since actual record sales don't yield much money to the bands/musicians themselves)--if you have them, you don't like file sharing; if you don't, then file sharing is whatever and in some cases good. Personally, I'd say that if you're looking to make money from royalties or record sales, you should probably re-evaluate your whole perspective on shit, to quote Hansel. If you are getting into the music business to have financial stability, fine, whatever, but don't be annoying and ruin it for everyone else like a 2nd grader by supporting the government to pass a law that would disconnect someone's internet access for file sharing.

Indeed, I think there is an attitude issue here. Namely, some people think that everything they do "deserves" money in return, often drawing a parallel to other work: "You get paid for a job you do, simple." Our culture may condone and reinforce that sentiment, but I think it's too egotistical and not really appropriate to the situation. And besides all that, letting people download your music is good business--much better, in fact, than sitting around hoping for a royalty check.

Still, it is simply not the case (and never has been, really) that people will shell out all kinds of money for someone they've never heard before. Also, the argument, featured in one entry on the blog, that the Beatles would never have "made it" if downloading had existed back in the day is, I'm sorry, complete bullshit. Their 12-hour, pill-fueled sets at the Cavern Club had nothing to do with selling records, and everything to do with getting good and getting paid. That, of course, is how most bands make their money. Cosmo Lee, of the Invisible Oranges blog, has some wisdom on this point: "Payment of anything is a powerful barrier to music consumption now. What would a band rather have — a handful of sales each month with pocket change revenues, or no revenues upfront but many fans familiar with the music and potentially buying merch at gigs?" This seems to be a question that a real up-and-comer would be asking--not "how do I fund my entire life and/or career with my music?" Even if you're Bob Dylan, that is simply unrealistic.

Napster sprang onto the scene in 1999--so we can safely say it's been ten years now since people have been "stealing" music and, actually, I'd argue that the state of music right now is the best it's been in a long time, probably since the 60s or 70s. It's not perfect, but there are hundreds (if not thousands or more) of creative and vibrant and, since we're talking about money, worthy acts everywhere in the world and in every genre of music. Still, and especially since people have been downloading music for so long now, you simply cannot realistically ask people to go back to shelling out $12-$16 A POP for the hundreds of thousands of basement recorders (of which I myself am one, actually) and struggling acts out there. All of this doesn't mean that those artists don't deserve that money--but that's really not the issue, if you ask me. The government outlawing file sharing isn't going to fix that at all--never, ever, no way. If people like something (and if they've already heard it on the internet or downloaded it), they'll search for it, they'll find it, and they'll buy it. And I think that's always been the case.

To a certain extent, this leads me to conclude that file sharing is, in fact, good for the music industry. That's a pretty detail-free assessment, sure, but there may be some truth to it. I was just reading an excellent interview with Devendra Banhart (thanks to the Munificent Kreg for that one) in which he talks about his recent signing with Warner Brothers records. Warners is one of the biggest record companies on Earth, and their signing of acts like Wilco, the Flaming Lips, and Devendra is evidence that they have been "humbled by this giant gaping hole in their finances. The internet and file sharing has shocked them into a weird reality."

Well, if that is true, then file sharing is without a doubt good for music. Maybe that's key--good for music, bad for the music industry. I mean, I feel like as long as there is music, there will be some kind of industry to exploit it, as with everything else in the world. That causes me to seriously doubt the assertion that file sharing is going to destroy any part of the "music industry." I think people tend to say something is being "destroyed" when something is actually just changing.

I think that file sharing goes hand-in-hand with the internet. And the internet has done nothing but good things for music, in my opinion, because it's all about access, which so many more people have now than used to. Now, if you've got something you want to say musically and a computer, you can express yourself and people can hear and enjoy it. That's beautiful. Sometimes I envision a future where just about everybody is in a band because it has just become so easy to do it. The internet's role in this whole issue certainly complicates things. For example, why is downloading an album illegal, but streaming music perfectly fine? You are still listening to music without paying for it...right? These are questions we need to answer sufficiently.

Of course, on the flip side, I almost cried when I heard Tower Records was going out of business. That was a very real result of these kinds of changes in the music industry. But I think things like that have a lot more to do with large inflexible corporations coming to terms with industry change verrrrrry slowly and awkwardly. Companies go out of business all the time, and in other industries people don't go around claiming that by outlawing the getting of goods elsewhere the problems will be solved. Also, as I pointed out above, CDs are far, far too expensive anyway. Even if file sharing and the internet didn't exist, many people can no longer justify to themselves (or their families) paying almost $20 for one piece of music with costs of living increasing. When you have to choose between that $16 Fleet Foxes record you've been pining after for months and a few meals, or a few rounds of laundry, or gas, guess which wins (I mean for most sane people, not me...)?

I respect everyone's concern in this issue, and I think that it is a positive thing overall. Concern isn't the problem, though--Lily Allen's blog is a reaction to a group opposed to the government disconnecting downloaders from the internet. Disconnecting people from the internet in 2009 sounds more than a little "totalitarian state" to me.

Last but not least, there is simply too much good music out there to buy all of it. Buying all the records (released in just, say, the past 4 years), would cost thousands of dollars. That is obviously not going to happen. But if I take the red pill and go to bit torrent, all my problems are solved, right? Not exactly. I still don't get the album art or any of that stuff (which for me is pretty necessary), and I don't get the pleasure of sliding that record onto the spindle and pressing play. I'd hardly call that stealing.

For more insight on this issue, I'd direct the reader to the excellent Invisible Oranges blog and the equally excellent New Music Strategies blog.

WHY I AM OFFICIALLY NEVER READING THE NEW YORK TIMES AGAIN

2009-09-21T11:00:00.002-04:00

I hate you.

I just read what was possibly one of the stupidest articles I have ever read in my life. Where did I find it, you might ask? None other than the New York Times, that supposed bastion of journalism and monopolizer of the hoity-toity and, some think, smart.

Turns out the Times isn't above a stale (and stretched) "tee-hee!" of baby boomer disconnect in the most IDIOTIC fashion imaginable: let's compare rappers with conservative radio hosts! What fun!

Especially at a time when these talk show hosts are at their most disgusting, basically inciting people to ignorance and thoughtless anger, just so they can sell more hatemongering, self-righteous books with their big fat faces taking up the entire back cover...especially at this time, with all the accusations of Nazism flying around, the Times thought it would be a good idea to compare Jay-Z to Rush Limbaugh.

Here's one major difference, NYT: Jay-Z is amazing and, however much you'd like to think he's a rich, misogyinistic ego (which I suppose was the initial link the author made to the radio hosts), he has actually brought a lot of beauty and happiness into the world in the form of amazing music and all of the people he has helped with it. These radio show hosts are just obnoxious and don't care who they hurt with what they say.

All of this might have been mitigated were the article actually funny. Instead if just comes off as being out-of-touch and bizarre.

First a bunch of articles about marijuana quoting only government sources and the Drug Free America Foundation, and now this. Fuck you, New York Times. Fuck you.

SADNESS

2009-09-17T16:39:00.003-04:00

peace, dude. i hope you are good where you are.

DEADENDRA

2009-09-11T16:44:00.003-04:00

Further proof that the Devendra band is painted all over with the youthful spirit of the kickass '68-'72 Grateful Dead. A new song called "Rats" from the upcoming LP What We Will Be. Can't wait.

THE FAMILY JAMS

2009-09-10T13:45:00.001-04:00

The Family Jams - Trailer from kevin barker on Vimeo.

Pray with me this shit gets a DVD release.

"The kinda hero you can remember with a smile on yer face..."

2009-09-04T13:04:00.001-04:00

Interviewer: What about "The last time I saw the King/he was shootin' at the TV?"
Neil Young: Well, actually, the last time I saw the King he was karate-choppin' a two-by-four, but I didn't put that in the song.

WHAT WE WILL BE

2009-09-03T17:54:00.002-04:00

That reminds me:

Devendra's new album, his first on WARNER/REPRISE (what the fuck??), is scheduled to come out this fall.

Tracklist:

01 "Can't Help"
02 "Angelika"
03 "Baby"
04 "Goin' Back To The Place"
05 "First Song For B"
06 "Last Song For B"
07 "Chin Chin & Muck Muck"
08 "16th & Valencia"
09 "Rats"
10 "Maria Leonza"
11 "Brindo"
12 "Meet Me At The Lookout"
13 "Wiliamdzi"
14 "Foolin'"

Its being produced by Paul Butler. Band: Noah Georgeson, Greg Rogove, Luckey Remington and Rodrigo Amarante.

SURFING

2009-09-03T17:15:00.006-04:00

Pitchfork should be fucking DE-ACTIVATED for giving this album anything less than a 9. Whatever, dudes. This album is a treasure chest overflowing with California summertime jams. I don't think Pitchfork has anything against California summertime jams, since they loved Person Pitch and El Guincho and a whole host of other things that fall into that category, so why do people hate on Devendra so much? Because he's funny? Did you get weirded out by the naked dudes on the cover? Isn't listening to music about having fun and not about looking smart? Stop being too cool for school, guys. Cynicism is bad for your health.

OK, now that that's out of the way...

This album is fantastic. I love it and listen to it for days on end. It's the sound of a band at the top of their inspirational shit. These guys are in touch with something that not many people are (maybe the reason for the lukewarm reception). The songs are crafted but free, clearly fueled by delicious fruity rum punches and wonderfully natural California grass, the album sounds like it was recorded in a corrugated shack on the best beach ever, and the whole thing just rips. It's an album about surfing for god's sake. What's not to like? Give it a spin.

Yesterday and Today

2009-09-03T14:34:00.008-04:00

Curfew time, hippie scum!

I was doing a little research on David Crosby today and I came across an interview with him on a blog I'd never been to before. The blog was mostly about politics and culture. Here's what the blogger had to say about the interview with Crosby:

"I think about Crosby doing his thing in the 60's and 70's and then I think about the musicians out there today. It's depressing. We have gone from musicians like Dave Crosby, Curtis Mayfield, & Marvin Gaye, (regardless of genre) to Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears, and Snoop Dog and the gangster rap culture."

Sometimes my Dad gets this way, though he knows what's up for the most part. Still, I really don't like this sentiment, and I think it's a complaint that doesn't stand to reason or facts. I also don't like this guy's shot at Snoop Dogg. All the guy sings about is sex and smoking weed--how much more anti-war can you get, dude??? People who think this way are not looking hard enough, not listening closely enough to make these kinds of grand, sweeping statements. Even Crosby, who is one of my heroes for sure, kept repeating in the interview that young people weren't standing up to Bush and the Iraq war.

I disagree with the idea that, because there are no good (or popular) protest songs that shit isn't getting done in this field. I mean, seriously--looking to Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears for consciousness-expansion and sociopolitical conscience is a waste of time, and you should know that. The 60's and 70's (two of my favorite eras in music, by the way) had plenty of super popular fluff acts who couldn't be bothered with people suffering, too. And besides, good dance music is a really strong force against suffering. So lighten up a little, peepz.

Things are certainly different now. But just look at some of the stuff I've talked about on this blog: Animal Collective, The Flaming Lips, Devendra Banhart, Wino, Flying Lotus...they're not saying "Give peace a chance" or "Four dead in Ohio," but all of these people definitely constitute a counterculture. Actually, listen to Banhart's Cripple Crow for some pure psychedelic Crosby-ish music that's good for your war-sick conscience as well.

Cripple Crow, Modern Masterpiece

I'm tired of older people saying shit like "Young people today aren't as good as we were, they don't do enough to change things." Fuck that. You're not looking hard enough. We're more subtle, but maybe that's because cryptofascist robocops have been breathing down our necks since we were 14. We learned to express ourselves INCREDIBLY well but still survive and not have to go to jail. We're trying to move beyond politics and mass movements and shit like that, because it's obvious to us that that stuff doesn't work anymore. We're not interested in re-doing the 60's, but so much music and culture today is definitely propelled by the same spirit. And that's what's important. Besides, we've been doing plenty of good old anti-state shit--you just won't read about it in a newspaper or see it on CNN.

So take a listen, everybody, before you judge.

THE FLAMING LIPS, MERRIWEATHER POST PAVILION

2009-08-31T14:01:00.006-04:00

I saw the Flaming Lips on Friday at Merriweather Post Pavilion. I'm not sure what to really say about this band; they are just amazing. College would have been completely and debilitatingly depressing without the exuberance and pure inspiration that this band gave me. Plus they make incredible, psychedelic music and their live show will constantly make you go "WHAT THE FUCK?!?!" Their new album (which you can preview here) is going to be fucking mind-blowing.

When they come through your town, GO. No matter who you are, or what you've done...you deserve it.

Oh, Steven. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways...

Great photos from DCist.

THE GATES OF SLUMBER

2009-08-31T13:18:00.004-04:00

The Gates of Slumber officially have the greatest album covers ever. Check out their newest, Hymns of Blood and Thunder, pictured above. It sounds a lot like it looks, people.

Simply amazing. I effin' love these guys.

FUCK METALLICA

2009-08-28T10:55:00.006-04:00

I've been a long-time defender of Metallica because of what their first four albums did for me. I know they are good and kind people. For these reasons and more I can never disrespect them.

However.

Fuck Metallica.

The only reason I'm saying this: Megadeth's new album has totally blown them out of the water. Death Magnetic sounds lame and pathetic next to Endgame. Period. Megadeth isn't doing anything new, really. They just kick about four trillion times as many asses as Metallica has anytime recently. Endgame fucking rips. I'm not interested in debating this point. One thing I've learned from working in politics: there is spin, and then there are the facts. The two can be separated pretty easily.

Death Magnetic is for chumps. Endgame is the real deal, brother.

WATERTOWN

2009-08-27T15:26:00.005-04:00

Sinatra's epic weeping monument to loneliness and the pure heartbreak of destroyed relationships. Not the Sinatra we in the Italian-American community are used to and possibly are annoyed by...instead, a highly emotional and colorful odyssey through the mind of a lonely suburban divorcee trying to figure it all out. You can realy tell how he made his transition to acting after listening to this shit, if you couldn't before. In other words, not really lounge/party music...more like groovy jams in the orange light of neardusk (which you may know I'm very much into). Possibly one of the most bittersweet albums ever made, with basslines that will slap your heart around with their awesome funkiness. Poppy desperation at its best. A must-hear. A lost gem. Wow.

MERRIWEATHER POST PAVILION

2009-08-26T13:14:00.007-04:00

Sometimes I post on this site to spread the word; with this particular album, though, I'm pretty confident the word has already been spread. One of the coolest things about these guys being so popular, for me, is that they operate on (pretty much) the exact level of weird beauty that makes me feel at home, if a spaceship can be a home. I think these guys are, for me, kind of a modern-day Pink Floyd, or what that band was for so many people in the 60's and 70's.

Still, I have to write something about it. I always pretty much assume that many of you out there are, like me, a little wary of hype. So if you trust me, let me break down that wall for ya.

This album is really just fantastic.

This record gives me a very strange feeling, one of the pleasantest feelings I've ever hosted. It's the same feeling I get from certain Coltrane albums, Hendrix jams, and other things like closed-eye motionlessness. I'll try to describe it:

strong-streaming-air-cylinder-core-presence-with-very-pleasant-wet-weight-in-mouth

That, of course, is pretty bad. When I sit and listen to these jams, my world slows down and I get this funny feeling that my breath becomes an unnoticeable column that ends very kindly in my mouth. I'm not doing any kind of exercise or anything like that, it just happens. It's definitely healing music.

Naturally, I can't guarantee that this will happen for you. But I can say that when you feel the room of your life getting uncomfortably small, take a listen to this guy. It should do something for ya.

Underwater Peoples

2009-08-23T10:12:00.005-04:00

I'm always surprised to see people I associated with in college being publicized. At the end of living on the beach for a week and hanging with my family (they say "hi") I've been checking up on the internet while burning as many CD's from my parents as I possibly can (Inner Circle, Jethro Tull, Floyd, sitar music), and I came across a post on Underwater Peoples on naturalismo. The people responsible for this little label of vigilant bliss were friends of friends, but I hung with some of them very briefly. Anyway, Real Estate and Family Portrait are two of my favorite bands. I love them and wish I knew them better, not because they are somewhat internet famous, but because they are good. I love their music, and now you will too.

(Brody is in both of these pictures because he's super-handsome.)

MOTIVATION

2009-08-06T11:18:00.001-04:00

Not music related, but definitely worth noting.

http://www.sloshspot.com/blog/12-31-2008/Hunter-S-Thompson-Motivational-Posters-98

"I love being motivated I LOVE BEING MOTIVATED!!!" - Nathan Explosion

Jesus christ.

2009-08-03T13:46:00.002-04:00

http://www.mastodonrocks.com/node/1110

This is shaping up to be the best concert year of my entire fucking life.

GOD IS GOOD

2009-08-03T13:32:00.002-04:00

SHRINEBUILDER

2009-08-03T13:30:00.001-04:00

Yes, this is what the Shrinebuilder album looks like.

New High On Fire

2009-07-31T16:43:00.002-04:00

The new HIGH ON FIRE album is slated for an early 2010 release. When asked for comment, Pike states, “We look forward to sharing the dark seas of our new riffs and tragic stories. Soon the next saga of High on Fire’s world will be known.”

http://metalbuzz.net/wp/2009/07/31/high-on-fire-set-to-begin-work-on-new-album/

Shrinebuilder Live

2009-07-31T08:16:00.001-04:00

This is actually all I can think about, so you may just be getting Shrinebuilder updates only until it comes out. Seriously.

11/14 - The Empty Bottle, Chicago

According to Scott Kelly.

SHRINEBUILDER

2009-07-23T13:40:00.007-04:00

Continuing our series of informational posts here on PTV: Shrinebuilder has released the track listing for their debut album.

01. Solar Benediction
02. Pyramid Of The Moon
03. Blind For All To See
04. The Architect
05. Science Of Anger

That's Scott Kelly, Al Cisneros, Dale Crover, and Wino, by the way.

Here's Al: "It`s gonna sound like when you have to lean down into your knees, to the space between your knees with a matchbook and a chilem, in the front seat of your car. And after having done that, you get outside of your car, close and lock the door, and you`re walking across the parking lot and your throat is absolutely burned. And it`s still worth it. It`s gonna be straight matches and resin."

YES.

Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, Guitar Player Magazine, Nov./Dec. '72

2009-07-22T06:48:00.000-04:00

The following is an interview taken from an issue of Guitar Player magazine from 1972. On a recent trip to my parent's house, my dad gave me a bunch of his old magazines, and they are all amazing. Thanks, Dad.

Arranging an interview with the great guitarist, Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, is no easy task. Fo a year and a half GP was after him to sit down with us and discuss his life with the guitar. At one point in 1971 McLaughlin even offered to write an article himself. Then he entered a period of serious self-introspection, a time whch would not allow him to permit interviews, one in which he was to establish a negative position toward discussing things ike tunings, strings, scales and such.

But McLaughlin finally agreed to meet with our writer during an afternoon sound check prior to the night's concert with his Mahavishnu Orchestra. He has been opening up more to the press during the previous few months, and was more outgoing. Still, he was not interested in talking about certain technical aspects of his guitaring, thngs that regular readers of GP have become accustomed to finding in our interviews. It was to be left to the writer to uncover, on his own, whatever could be learned about equipment and the like.

I was to meet Mahavishnu, whom I first addressed as John, at 3 PM, but since he hadn't arrived I began looking over his equipment whch had just been set up. He would be playing through 100-watt Marshall Super Lead amp and three Marshall bottoms, all thrugh the PA system. On the floor was a DeArmond 602 volume pedal, the only pedal he would later use.

Violinist Jerry Goodman was theonly musican to arrive on time. McLaughlin was next, thought, and proceeded to sit down and play drums. He said he was happy to do the interview, but wasn't interested in discussing technical matters. But as the time grew later, Mahavishnu grew more and more cnerned over the whereabouts of the rest of his band, so we agreed to meet after the evening's show.

At 9 PM the musicians were in place and McLaughlin walked on stage with his double-necked Gibson. The group mostly played tunes from the Inner Mounting Flame album, sounding amazingly like the record (natural fuzz on the guitar). Mahavishnu played most of his leads on the 6-strong neck, and most of the arpeggiated chords on the 12-string neck. He played one duet with the drums that sounded amazingly full, because he was playing in the same key to which the double bass drums were tuned (two roots).

Following the five minutes of standing ovation and a final encore, I met McLaughlin in the dressing room where he was relaxing, eating fruit.

How long did it take to put this band together?

It took me about two months to find all the musicians. I knew the drummer and the violinist, and I'd heard of the others through friends. Like Miroslav Vituous (bass) told me about Jan Hammer (piano).

Wasn't Vituous on Spaces, your first album after you broke with Miles Davis?

I haven't broken with Miles, in fact we've done other sessions together. I was never with him in the sense most people think. And I wasn't with Larry Coryell on that Spaces album. It and Devotion were both studio recordings.

With all your playing experience, what do you find yourself falling back on the most?

Everything! I grew to where I am, and I use everything in balance. As I grow more, my playing will change as my being changes. I draw on all present things, and on what is beyond me.

When you solo, is it total self-concentration or is it open concentration on the entire band?

Open. You open yourself to the things around you. Of course, it depends on the state of consciousness you're in, how deep and how high. I've been in states of consciousness where I'm not the creator. Then I just play, thats all.

What do you think of your solos on Jack Johnson and earlier albums?

Those were a long time ago. That was me then, but what I'm doing now is what best represents me. Of course, my development is well represented by those albums, because music is the only language I speak. I am learning the language of silence and meditation, the highest of languages.

Is communication what you want to do?

Yes! I want to move people. When I play I want people to feel what is inside them. Those people tonight were clapping for what they feel inside themselves. And that's what I want to do, only deeper--purer and purer.

Many people consider you a rock guitarist. Do you?

I don't care what people call me. I don't care what they call the music. We just get up there and play. It's like, people ask me what kind of music we play, and I say, "You listen, then you can call it anything you want." There are people who consider themselves Mahavishnu Rock and Roll Freaks, that's great, I'd rather play for rock and roll audiences than jazz audiences anyway. Jazz listeners are too narrow, too purist for us. Rock audiences are more open.

How do you approach your improvisation?

When there is a desire to express something, there is a need. And out of that need it is born. Like, when you're carving and you say, "That's not right!" You take away some, you add some. The total sound is the concern. But sometimes you don't carve out the right amount, because you can't always have great performances. Like meditating, you don't always have an incredible meditation every time. It would be like having a sumptuous feast every time you ate. You have to eat a little bread and water, be a little frugal. Frugal soup.

Is the desire to utilize this approach of yours born out of a need to?

It is born out of your dissatisfaction with your lot, your dissatisfaction with what you're doing and your lack of fulfillment. Most people don't fulfill their desires, let alone their aspirations. But they can if they want.

But what if you feel your desires are being hampered by th musicians youre playing with?

If you feel you're being dragged down by them, then your attitude is too passive, for a start, with negative overtones. It's your duty to inspire your fellow musicians. It's your duty to inspire your fellowman, because the inspiration is within you and within me. And, toinspire you have to aspire.

Did your spiritual involvement begin after Jack Johnson?

I think I had just become a disciple in New York when that was recorded. You might say I was just born.

Would you explain "Mahavishnu?"

When you become a disciple you have a master. Mine is Sri Chinmoy. At some point he gives you a name, and that name has a very strong spiritual significance. It relates directly to the soul, and defines your existence and your whole body. Like you have certain qualities in your personality that are dominant, another person has other ones. These qualities must manifest themselves in your Being. The name embodies thee qualities, and the more you are called the name the more you use the name, and the more the name helps you. Mahavishnu is an Indian god; Maha the Creator, and Vishnu the Preserver.

Do you feel more satisfaction from your playing now than before?

I have been evolving, growing all the time. As I evolve more, my music evolves more, and I feel more fulfillment. It's a constant process.

Does meditation help eliminate distractions while playing?

It helps my entire life. But, to eliminate distractions you have to live for something else, God ideally. By doing that you don't become self-oriented, but become selflessly-oriented. Once you rid yourself of the false ego, you lose your self in the music. And the moment you lose your self in the music is the moment you are getting somewhere, and the moment you are getting somewhere is the moment you begin to find your self. Losing your self.

On a good night, when you lose your self, do you perform unconsciously, listening to your fingers play?

Sure. Of course. Music is way beyond the mind. You're conscious of what you're doing, but you're being moved by something greater. When I'm completely lost is when the music is the most incredible.

To what can a person listen to hear musicians like yourself?

Indian musicians! I am more and more influenced by Indian culture. I surround myself with their music and ideas.

What can a guitarist study to better understand and appreciate your music?

I'm not a musician for musicians. I'm a musician for non-musicians. That's what I want to be, and that's what I'll always want to be. What is a musician for if he isn't for the non-musician? I'm a musician, I'm the ears of humanity. I listen on behalf of humanity. Most people's roles in this divine drama on earth is to do something else, but they love music so I am here for them. Musicians are here for people who can't hear, and painter are here for people who can't see--so they canlearn to hear and see.

OM ANNOUNCES NORTH AMERICAN TOUR

2009-07-17T10:34:00.004-04:00

Get to one of these places. Your health depends upon it.

9/17 - Neumo's, Seattle
9/18 - Biltmore, Vancouver
9/19 - Doug Fir, Portland
9/24 - The Independent, San Francisco
9/25 - Echoplex, Los Angeles
9/26 - Casbah, San Diego
10/7 - Bottom Lounge, Chicago
10/8 - Magic Stick, Detroit
10/9 - Wrongbar, Toronto
10/10 - La Salsa Rossa - Quebec
10/11 - Europa, Brooklyn
10/12 - Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston
10/13 - Bowery Ballroom, New York
10/14 - Johnny Brenda's, Philadelphia
10/15 - DC9, DC
10/16 - TBD, Chapel Hill
10/17 - The Earl, Atlanta

I forgot to mention at the original posting of this, OM will be supported by Lichens and Grouper. You'll want to arrive at the venue early enough to see them, too.

I'll be at DC9 on the 15th for sure. Peace and heaviness.

SABOTAGE

2009-06-29T21:48:00.009-04:00

Damn right safe seach is off.

I feel like the media often portrays Black Sabbath as those "regular Jack & Jerry" types, that were all into it but, let's face it, just not that good. They were, after all, average blokes.

I think that what these critics fail to point out (or stress, maybe) is that these were not untalented blokes, be they as they were from a working class background. (Maybe, also this makes them all the more kickass? What with Iommi losing the tips of two of his fretting fingers in an accident at the sheet metal factory he worked at? These guys were destined.) They were all first-rate musicians, without a doubt. This virtuosity is showcased on every one of their albums.

Whew, OK. That rant is over. Thanks for indulging me, oh blank reptile stare of the internet. It's a Monday night, and I'm rockin' out to album one.

DINOSAUR JR - FARM

2009-06-29T16:57:00.003-04:00

I'm so goddamn glad this band put aside their issues, got back together, and started cranking out new albums. For my money, I like Farm even more than Beyond, their previous post-reunion album, even though that one was a firm but gentle rocker for the ages as well.

What can I possibly say about this band. They were one of the first bands I saw in DC, and they were certainly and absolutely (at the time) the loudest band I'd ever seen. I nearly vomited with joy at the sight of J Mascis' three Marshall stacks. For me, Dinosaur Jr have always brought the funk, and so as soon as I get paid (I believe it was supposed to be today. Anyone from my office, if you are reading this, yes I am doing this on company time, but then again...money, please!) I'm gonna get this new green beast on vinyl.

Just look at that album cover! I won't settle for anything smaller than 12".

BLACK SABBATH - HEAVEN AND HELL

2009-06-17T12:12:00.005-04:00

The dawn of the 80's, and the beginning of Black Sabbath's twilight years. But, like your good ol' Uncle Judd, they're not going quietly.

On a whim, but subconsciously (I suspect) in preparation for my summer pilgrimage to the Merriweather Post Pavilion to see these legends on their current world tour, I put Heaven and Hell in my Discman this morning.

The hidden gem I found during this most recent re-discovery is certainly "Die Young", which features gorgeous, spacey guitar interludes, strong echoes of which can be found on Lamb of God's latest (Wrath). Indeed, warm and melodic intros seem to be all the rage these days, with Mastodon's latest opus (Crack the Skye) vying with Wrath for dibs on "most gorgeous, spacey interludes" so far this year. That said, "Die Young" features one of the greatest bridges in rock history, in my opinion.

Of course, this album is no mere lucky dustbin--it's a trove. Listening to "Neon Knights" WILL make you drive fast. It was one of those songs that, with its sheer velocity and retarded-good solo, changed the course of my life forever. This was not the Sabbath I had known, not the Sabbath of "Paranoid" and "Sweet Leaf"--but still just as sweet. Then again, after the supersonic luge of "Neon Knights" and melodic acoustic intro to "Children of the Sea", the plodding behemoth makes itself known once more, as big and beautiful as ever. "Walk Away" sounds remarkably like a Rod Stewart-led Faces, around the time of their rock gem A Nod Is As Good As A Wink...To A Blind Horse. Dio's ballsy rockstar vocals and Geezer's (as usual) world-class bass work are perfect counterpoints to Iommi's high-gain electrical storm. A straightforward rock masterpiece. It's also evident that the members of Sleep listened to this album enough times to incorporate its slower, stranger elements into their own sound. Anyone looking for these more vintage (but still different) riffs should skip to the final song on the album, "Lonely Is The Word". And what a closer it is.

I suppose if there is only one reason to listen to Heaven and Hell, it is Tony Iommi. Even if you hate the lyrics, even if you want to punch Dio in the face (a blasphemy I will only hypothetically tolerate), even if the riffs just don't do it for you, this album showcases Iommi's soloing genius in a way that no previous Sabbath album had. They may not be any faster or more complex than on earlier albums, but the long years of honing those great, golden, spidery chops that fold under and lift higher like a rocket's exhaust are evident in every one of these songs.

Indeed, Heaven and Hell contains the best of both Sabbath and a band like Rush--so perhaps ask yourself how much you like the latter band before you decide to even put this album on. The riffing has evolved--no doubt about that. Dio certainly lends an arena anthem quality to Sabbath, and Iommi trusts his instincts enough to follow along, turning them into a very different, but no less powerful and hard rocking, band.

New OM Album "God Is Good" Out Sept 8th, Drag City

2009-06-12T14:03:00.002-04:00

I'm not going to say anything else. Except give you the track listing:

1. Thebes
2. Meditation is the Practice of Death
3. Cremation Ghat I
4. Cremation Ghat II

Fuck yes.

NOT MUSIC

2009-06-09T10:24:00.002-04:00

Um, so this post actually has nothing to do with music. As such, it will be brief. I felt like I had to, however, show you all a little sample of one of my favorite blogs: Radstronomical, which belongs to my buddy Diego (shout outz), an up-and-coming artist and animator who is, well, pretty fucking radstronomical.

There's a link on the sidebar over yonder, and it's been there, but I wanted to give you a little sample of Diego's stuff. Check him out, waste a bunch of time on his blog, and enjoy.

TRANSMISSIONS FROM SINAI (AL CISNEROS, ET. AL)

2009-06-05T23:21:00.011-04:00

Yes, all the news is true. There are quite a few many beautiful gems on the new Al-Cisneros-curated mix CD from Arthur publications, entitled Tranmissions From Sinai. In all honesty, sometimes when I think I might be losing interest, these cursed West Coast conjurers brew up something that I have to buy. And it is always worth it.

And that is why I don't mind shilling for them here. For a mere $12, you can have this fine, fine audiodisc to have forever. Honestly, there are only 1,000 of these things. OK, advertisement over.

“Here are sixteen reports, differing approaches that, through their own individualized methods, access the one ground. It’s a privilege and blessing to have known many of the musicians on this disc, to have shared in song with some, and stages with others. In all cases I have been the healed recipient of their craft sitting alone with my headphones… Here is their auditory journal.” —Al Cisneros February 2009

We have quite a range of beauties here. From Lichens' totally amazing cosmic yawn opener, to the sweet, sweet dubbed out reggae in hits from Linval Thompson and an outageously good Alpha & Omega. Two of my personal favorites--Wino's fuzzed-out, drippy hot pickle sandwich of creeping doom "Silver Lining" (on the kickass album that I wrote about here) and Grails' really (seriously) cool Pink-Floyd-y "Acid Rain". I suppose that just comparing them to a classic band might be doing them a disservice, but honestly, I'm lazy. I'm a lazy, lazy writer. And I'm OK with that. Sometimes when I listen to music, I turn into a dog, and sometimes all I can think is "Pink Floyd! Pink Floyd!" Please understand that this is an expression of great joy.

Really. This is a great record. Good job for ruling, guys and gals.

SUNNO))) - MONOLITHS & DIMENSIONS

2009-06-04T17:45:00.003-04:00

I am, as I write this, making the glorious mistake of listening to the new SunnO))) album, Monoliths & Dimensions, at work. It has been a long day at the end of a long week, at the end of a very, very long series of weeks. Maybe it's because I feel like a toiling slave of old that I identify with the riffs that move at the pace of a ten-ton pyramid block, which is what SunnO))) have been doing since their robed and droning inception. A typical SunnO))) concert is pictured above.

This album is fucking crazy. Probably one of the most wonderfully frightening and creepy albums I've ever heard. Conch horns and harpy choirs flare up around thick lava moats of throat singing and incredibly, incredibly distorted vintage amplifiers as big as your damn house. The blaring and extreme lumbering, rather than driving me crazy, are activating my mind in a very unique way, and that is probably the whole point of music. It's interesting to note that there are somewhere between thirteen and sixteen non-band contributors to this album, but if you want all that shit go read Pitchfork (who gave it an 8.5 no less!). I can't be bothered. The healing has begun.

MASTODON/WINO

2009-05-18T16:11:00.005-04:00

I am blessed enough to experience synesthesia, which can best be described as thinking of things in terms of color. This applies to things or concepts with no color at all--ideas, musical notes, and words are all essentially color-coded in my head. While that sounds boring, it's not: it's color coding with every single conceivable color. And it's not that I see the colors, it's more like I can feel them. As such, it is truly a non-drug-induced psychedelic experience, almost akin to communicating with advanced-consciousness aliens (also how I astonishedly heard Lamb of God's excellent Mark Morton describe hearing Eddie Van Halen soloing for the first time).

I have a theory that my synesthesia has a lot to do with my love (although I suppose obsession is a better word) of music, and especially of music with tons of guitar--what is more awesome, after all, than hearing a song and being psychically assailed by a torrent of glittering colors? Since electric guitars are literally imbued with energy, I can hear the notes, not only with color, but with electricity coursing through them, resulting in a kind of whirlwind of brightly illuminated and colored starlines in my head. Most heavy metal--especially speed metal or death metal--is colored very darkly, and etched with writhing veins of red gold lava. (Sometimes the lava is blue or violet--one of my favorite synesthetic experiences.) I love sitting under that violent cascade of stark contrast; it's very intense. I am always intrigued, however, by odd color assortments in the music I listen to. Now that I think of it, that's probably why I love Jimi Hendrix so much, since for me his music contains basically every color imaginable. This speaks to the alien comparison above.

Lately, for example, I've been listening to two albums that have really turned my head, and it's largely because of their vibrant, unusual colors. Mastodon, as I am sure many of you readers already know, is a very, very heavy band. But their latest album, Crack the Skye, is a hailstorm of galactically intricate riffs and voices melding into an incredible, unique listening experience. From the twin standpoints of my synesthetic mind and my deep, abiding love of the riff, this album really does feel like it's cracking my head open (in the best way). The notes of each riff seem to arrange themselves scientifically, like forces of nature bounding through space and time. Interestingly, the iTunes version of this album (I'm planning on buying the CD later, as it also comes with a Making-Of DVD, which I can't resist.) contains score tracks of every song on the album--no vocals, just riffs, riffs, and more glorious riffs. Listening to these tracks definitely reinforces the idea that the voices of Mastodon are playing riffs just as the guitars are.

Another album that has a similar patina of globbed orange and streaking electric blues and blacks is Wino's Punctuated Equilibrium. The riff structures and arrangements in this album are so unusual to me, but still so organic and perfectly placed, that it's a marvel to behold. Smatterings of Hendrix, Zappa and Sabbath are there, of course, but Wino is truly such a unique guitar player that such comparisons don't hold much water beyond a musical theory standpoint. There are no winding-stair riffs or ocean-tumble drums that make Mastodon such a holy listening experience; rather, Wino is all groove and unbelievable soloing virtuosity in the righteous form of giant orange sheet lightning.

Get these albums. Let them change you.

Malfunction #23,999,371

2009-05-04T16:27:00.002-04:00

My computer is officially broken, so I will try to post as often as possible before I get a new one. For now, please enjoy this hilarious interview with members of Mastodon, killer weirdo ultimate destruction band from Georgia. They'll be at the 930 Club on Tuesday May 12th. See you there, bitches.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ychzoSJYQw&NR=1

BLACK SABBATH - LIVE AT LAST

2009-04-05T14:42:00.006-04:00

It was the most unassuming of the records I bought that day--a Best of Scorpions, a Stormtroopers of Death record, and the Ozzman Cometh CD were the others--but oh, it has shown itself to be the most amazing. It stands as possibly the only recipient of the Metal Live at Leeds Award, even though The Who's Live at Leeds itself would be a substantial entry.

These guys are amped up on so much coke and awesomeness that it can't help but fuel the primitive (and therefore more awesome, bludgeoning) metal onslaught that is "Live At Last". The album also features moments of Iommi's incredibly awesome Eastern experimentalism, quiet landmarks that punctuate the band's album-wide meditation in ass-kicking. It only helps that throughout they are digging deep into their blues roots, which sounds boring but is, in actuality, completely brutal.

Aside from all this brutality and awesomeness, this album just kicks ass. Witness the cliche-shattering storm brewing in the intro to War Pigs, or the sludgy mayhem attack of Cornucopia. This concert features what is probably the greatest Sabbath set list ever:

Tomorrow's Dream

Sweet Leaf

Killing Yourself to Live

Cornucopia

Snowblind

Embryo/Children of the Grave

War Pigs

Wicked World/Supernaut

Paranoid

It is at least the best you could ever expect without their recreating an entire album. And this list even mixes it up a bit! Of course, the inclusion of Supernaut represents a cream dream in itself.

This one has it all, folks: bass lines fat and bouncy as inner tubes, mind-shattering sloth/hornet guitar attack, giant and slaying drums, and Ozzy shouting "WE LOVE YOU" during every song. A diamond in the rough with an extremely unassuming/yet still awesome lunar scape cover design, this album was actually released (legally) without the band's permission or knowledge in 1980. One of their best, one of the best.

SEPULTURA

2009-03-31T10:56:00.006-04:00

Ah, Brazil. Dangerous and beautiful. Where the bikinis are low-cut and the crime rates are high. I, personally, choose to focus on the positive. Brazil, you have given us Piedra Azul, Caetano Veloso, and Sepultura. For this I thank you.

Piedra Azul

Beneath the Remains is certainly equal to Slayer's magnum opus Reign in Blood in terms of intensity and pure, unadulterated riffage. This is one of those albums that I listen to over and over again--one of those albums that stands out in the vast, churning red sea that is Thrash Metal. It's one of those albums that makes me want to learn how to play it from beginning to end. And Oh, I will succeed. Ever wonder what a motorcycle made out of dead robots would sound like? Well, take a listen brothers and sisters. This thing was, and is, way ahead of its time.

FLYING LOTUS: IMAGERY

2009-03-29T16:17:00.003-04:00

These music videos are (pretty much EXACTLY) what I see in my head when I throw some Lotus on the headphones. They are beautiful and pretty perfect, and very touching to me because I grew up with the films that this video samples. They--and Flying Lotus' album, Los Angeles--are dear to me because, although you would find all of the films here in the Sci-Fi section of your local Blockbuster or whatever, they capture the very things that make science fiction as a genre so compelling.

I like to think that I didn't get into science fiction when I was a kid as a way to withdraw from social interaction, or some kind of coping mechanism for being maladjusted and weird. I never pretended Princess Leia or the "hot" Borg chick from "Star Trek: Voyager" was my girlfriend. I wanted to be a Jedi because they were powerful but enlightened. They were in touch with the universe. The space explorers in these films touched on a deep well of desire in me to get to know the space we are floating around in, to accept it as part of myself and try to bathe in its complexity, since it is my complexity too. Space and the future--and really everything--in these movies are psychedelic, and not in a cheesy tie-dye way, but in a way of truly altering one's mind that results in broader, more realistic knowing.

Enjoy this shit:

http://vimeo.com/3785598

Things I Am Thankful For

2009-03-22T23:05:00.004-04:00

There was a time, when I was very, very young, When Metallica Ruled. Not only were they good, they were the best--arguably the asskickingest band in the world. The Metallica that still exists, that still tours with a totally badass opening band (The Sword--get some.), is and is not the same Metalica...but their latest incarnation is a different animal entirely.

What can we begrudge a long-time hard rocking band the end of their magic? I guess that depends a lot on your temperament. Metallica have created at least three of my all time favorite albums, but that doesn't mean I have to like their new shit. It's the complexity of music that makes it so awesome, people. Right?

But, since I owe so much to Metallica, I don't want to disrespect in the name of my own vanity. For realz.

Metallica has been doing a few very awesome, kinda-music related things lately that I want to acknowledge. I'd like my appreciation to ooze out into their havoc-wrought realm.

First: Metallica is a pretty powerful band. In fact, it has such a pull on the heartstrings of Hessians 'round the globe that it can, as a group, ask a young face-melting band from Texas to join them, and Boom: you're opening for Metallica. I mean, these guys aren't too much older than I am. That dude they're sitting next to at the bar, that dude they may or may not be hurling on, that dude is KIRK HAMMETT. And so when The Sword played in DC, I happened to pee next to that dude, and as we were actively peeing, we shared a few words of rejoicing over the solo to "One". That's right. In any case, The Sword could not refuse. Who are you to refuse The Sword?

Second: Kirk Hammett and James Hetfield are regular voice actors on the Adult Swim cartoon Metalocalypse. First of all, this is one of the best shows on television (although I haven't actually seen it on TV in a while...does anyone know if this got picked up again??). The comedy is perfect, and the songs absolutely kick ass. I'm endlessly impressed with this show every time I see it. These two usually contribute voices for Dethklok's goofy/totally insane fanbase. Even if you hated Death Magnetic, you can appreciate these guys' acting talent. I'm not kidding.

MELVINS

2009-02-09T20:39:00.004-05:00

Listen to opening track "Boris" off of their record Bullhead. Never have two guitars sounded so fucking TALL. You have to crane your neck to glimpse the tops of their looming black heaviosity! And for some reason, they are like the Pixies of metal: completely amazing, but really just really weird. My buddy Mitch introduced me to their "Gluey Porch Treatments" years ago, and I instantly fell in love with their downtuned awesomeness. This one's for you, Mitch Sr. I hope you are good where you are.

Matt Pike Interview: Top 5 Albums

2009-02-08T17:44:00.005-05:00

Yes, these are "obvious" albums. But they are true. This isn't the fucking record store from High Fidelity.

Although I do really like that record store.

Part 1

Part 2

GOODBYE, LAST.FM

2009-01-24T22:24:00.006-05:00

Combined iPod failure and computer meltdown has lead me to completely restore my hard drive. Due to my impatience/incompetence, a lot of stuff I would have liked to bring with me into the Obama administration has been left behind, sadly. Some things I will miss--like my iTunes-purchased copy of Autopsy's Mental Funeral--and I'm glad others have been left in the dust of yet another ACER Aspire 5000 malfunction. **Sigh** Damn ye, cheap technology.

One thing I have decided to leave behind is Last.fm. This website is a great way to stay in touch with musical polymaths who have moved away (i.e. You can see what they are listening to), but be wary, because it can just as easily turn into a way of advertising your prestigious palate to others. For example, Last.fm takes a while to adjust to an abrupt shift in musical tastes, and for a while there my reignited love affair with metal led me to become thoroughly interested in out-scrobbling Devendra Banhart and Animal Collective with Black Sabbath, The Sword, and Slayer.

My newfound clarity has shown me the error of my ways. Who cares what the rankings are? Answer: no one should. Last.fm was great, but music is truly about a personal experience, and I am now finding that an evening alone with Amon Amarth's Twilight of the Thunder Gods (especially check out "Varyags of Miklagaard") on my headphones and 4-5 beers in my belly is about one million times more rewarding than having to worry about a website truly reflecting something as personal and transient as one's current musical taste. In summation, Last.fm is damn cool, just be careful of the obsession-factor. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some Viking metal to listen to and some villages to burn.

PEPSI BOYCOTT BEGINS NOW

2009-01-22T21:37:00.007-05:00

Has anyone else seen this damn commercial? I suppose it can be considered whining, but one thing I can't help but be petulant about is multinational corporations and insurance companies using rock music to sell their dirty, overpriced, blood-drenched poison-merchandise. Do whatever else you want in your commercials: list your drug's lethal side effects really fast, cast Howie Mandell in them...fuck, you can rip off Wes Anderson's indie sensibility for all I care! But one thing I will not stand for is wielding the power of ROCK for twisted, ill deeds. Fuck you, Pepsi. Fuck you, advertising world. Respect the power of rock. Face facts, people: you will never be as important and vital as this:

Bruce > Everyone Else

2009-01-18T13:56:00.007-05:00

My dream setlist for Bruce Springsteen's Inaugural Concert:

1. "Born in the USA"
2. "American Skin (41 Shots)"
3. "American Skin (41 Shots)"
4. "American Skin (41 Shots)"
5. "American Skin (41 Shots)"
6. "American Skin (41 Shots)"
7. "Dancing in the Dark"
8. "My Love Will Not Let You Down"
9. "41 Shots (Reprise)"

Please, Bruce. Don't back down.

THE BAND

2009-01-18T12:32:00.008-05:00

The Band are one of those bands (like the Grateful Dead or Metallica or Weezer or, well, all of my most favorite bands) that grabs me by my emotional testicles so hard at first that I think I hate them. If that doesn't quite make sense, what I mean is that some music generates such a powerful gut reaction that it seems like I have to go through a period of denial before I admit that, yes, this music is brutally amazing.

I had always heard the Band, primarily through an old drinking/music buddy (Shout out Mike Finn--P.S. My dad wants to remind you that you still have my bass guitar.) whose personal style closely followed Band-member Robbie Robertson. When I got a job at a crazy little bookstore in Georgetown, my exposure to the Band quadrupled, as my boss gave me the choice between Music from Big Pink or more obscure Vanguard folk stuff that I'm not that interested in, good as it may be.

At first, the voices repelled me. They sounded whiney. I didn't like the fact that they were Canadians appropriating and celebrating Americana in their songs. I didn't like their weirdness. I didn't like Garth Hudson's keyboard playing, mostly because as a teenager my parents had taken me to see a local radio concert at which he was the guest star, and during the final band he wandered on stage playing a saxophone in the middle of the set and refused to leave. (He was a very old man at that point, so only a teenager could hold that against him I guess.)

Then I got into Bob Dylan. Though they were called the Hawks at the time, most of the Band's personnel played the songs of Blonde on Blonde behind him, and their 1966 concert at Royal Albert Hall is both infamous and totally mind-blowing. That album (which I highly recommend) is where I first really listened to and fell in love with Levon Helm's drumming, which is tastefully reminiscent of Ringo Starr's perfectly-placed fills and also fucking ROCKS. Perhaps most important of all, though, was the reversal of my opinion of Garth Hudson. Rather than low-mixed old-man noodling, as I had previously thought Garth was solely capable of, I discovered vaporous, bubbling tones and brightly psychedelic organ chords, and he and Robbie Robertson's guitar solos absolutely made those Dylan songs what they are.

The Band, in my opinion, has every right to call themselves The Band because they are one of the tightest bands ever, perhaps rivalled only by the Beatles. These guys are pop geniuses, period. They are a gnarly bunch of dudes (see above album cover photo) who sound beautiful together and are also capable of true weird gold. But mostly just gold. Put this shit on your stereo, drink some wine from the bottle, and pass it to the guy/gal on your left. Or right. Whatever. Enjoy.

Albums to check out: The Band, Music from Big Pink

DJ NOBODY

2009-01-02T07:57:00.004-05:00

Mainstream culture has its merits, to be sure, and I am not one to reject something based solely on the sheer number of people who appropriate it as "their own." Trouble is, sometimes the mainstream is a hot tub filled with rotting oatmeal and polluted fish carcasses (and other stuff), and it is at these times that an extended dip in a cool, refreshing smaller stream is not only nice--it's necessary. Dublab is one of those streams.

Located in the heart of a currently interesting Los Angeles, Dublab broadcasts delishus weirdness to you and me via its website and its podcasts, which are available for free on iTunes (hint hint!). In my opinion, this podcast is required listening for the musically curious, especially at that price.

On the bus back from the yearly family gathering that happens to coincide with a national celebration of the initiation of 3 centuries of Indian genocide, I had some time to catch up with the dublab podcasts that were in permanent back-burner exile since my re-discovery of metal, and I came across a true gem: DJ NOBODY'S BLANK BLUE (pictured above). Surprising, original, equal parts show-offy and spiritually expedient, this guy knows what he's doing, and even if he doesn't, IT'S AMAZING. It completely transformed the bus ride home--the trash and jungle rot of the I-95 shoulder was suddenly replaced by a big field of 32-bit Nintendo flora under a big weird sun. Basically, best Donkey Kong soundtrack ever. Get this shit.

OM

2008-12-15T22:32:00.003-05:00

Ex-Sleep riff-wraiths unfurl drum-and-bass songs of worship that roll like a brewing ocean. Upon hearing of this band's premise, I thought: "It will need guitar." Guess what: it don't. Al Cisneros' bass makes fat ribbons of riff that buzz and crawl with the best, THE BEST I SAY. Chris Hakius does the most with the least--check out his bass drumming on the end of "At Giza" from their album Conference of the Birds. That reminds me--these guys know how to name their albums:

Conference of the Birds

Gebel Barkal

Inerrant Rays of Infallible Sun (Blackship Shrinebuilder)

Live in Jerusalem*

Pilgrimage

Variations on a Theme

If you think these songs are boring, you don't have ears as far as I'm concerned. When I hear them I can't stop seeing these musicians' barely luminous cat eyes beaming their dull green pools into my skull. Wow. Music to get lost in, to be sure. Sample their unitive knowledge of the godhead.

*Yes, this album is a live concert recorded in Jerusalem.

I Hate Fader (Sometimes)

2008-12-03T09:50:00.007-05:00

Folks, I'm about to get a little ranty on yo' asses.

Fader Magazine has recently published a column in which two guys talk about the most boring things they can think of relating to Devendra Banhart. Rather than talking about his music or something he said or did, they have deemed it fit to assail the world with a jaw-droppingly mundane roundtable discussion "CONSIDERING DEVENDRA BANHART IN LATE 2008."

OK, before I get into heavier stuff, apparently these guys don't really like Megapuss and think it is a joke or, as they put it, a "fuck you". That's insulting. Not just to Devendra, but to the world. When Neil Young made Trans, a purposely horrible science-fiction electronica album, solely because his record label didn't want him to, THAT was a fuck-you. I don't know, I just don't get it. Surfing has some AMAZING jams on it, and I think people are trying to make them more than what they are--jams. And what is wrong with letting them be the jams that they are?? It's an album about surfing!! Surfing = fun. Jams = fun. Why is The Fader anti-fun?? Why are jams a less-acceptable form of ass-kicking music?? THEY TOTALLY JAM!

Moving on, these guys are totally and completely pretentious. We are all fans of Devendra, and he has some star quality to be sure. But come on, Fader. "Considering Devendra Banhart in Late 2008"?!? So lame. If you want to get all fucking academic about it, go back to school. Please spare the reading public your gross, desiccated journalistic fantasies of...well, I have no idea what. I have been trying to think about why music journalists do shit like this, and I simply cannot think of a single reason. WHY DO MAGAZINES WANT TO KILL MUSIC?

I'm exaggerating, of course. Fader sometimes has some great content and beautiful layouts and pictures, but this is retarded. I'd like to admit that there was a time when all I could do was await Devendra's next release, or the slightest bit of news or an interview. He gave recommendations for life-changing books and music, and I received a bit of an education from him. He inspired me to go for broke and make my own music. Suddenly I was clutching a copy of Working On Wings to Fly to my chest and muttering to myself about Andy Cabic's new haircut. Then...I started listening to other music. And while I stopped paying attention, Devendra continued to release great, great stuff and say things that are funny and really pretty wise. I guess what I'm trying to say is that it's disgusting to endlessly speculate on the exploits of a mildly famous person--even if you love the music they create.

That space could have been occupied by something we actually want to read. You have the right to publish what you want, Fader...but more Tiny Tim and Marc Bolan comparisons? George Clooney in Batman & Robin?? Bob Dylan?? Even if someone is the next Bob Dylan, you don't say it. It's kind of like how in baseball you don't say "no-hitter" while one is in progress--except in this case you don't say it EVER. Why? Because it doesn't matter. I suppose this is just further evidence of the boring state of most music writing today, with its endlessly stupefying parade of comparisons and comparisons and MORE damn comparisons. (Not that I don't make comparisons....) I suppose it's one of the major dilemmas in writing about music in general, really, and one that I struggle with a lot: what's the point of even doing it when you can just let the music stand on its own? Well, that's a debate for another time. Let's just say for now that some Fader writers are forgoing all nuance in their grappling with this issue and going the way of everyonefuckingelse.

CIRITH UNGOL

2008-11-21T10:08:00.004-05:00

I love Lord of the Rings. Not sure why...there are probably many reasons. Yeah, the movies were pretty good, but anyone who has seen them without reading the books is seriously missing out. (But let's not get into that.)

Moving on, I've been reading Decibel Magazine's blog a lot recently (see link to your right), and it's really a great one. Excellent writing, a lot of widely varying tastes communicating with each other, great photos and recommendations, and awesome sense of humor. Just as an example, as of right now their latest post is titled: "The Top 5 Enemies of the Revolution in Latin America Living in the United States." (NOTE: I've just been shocked to realize that this list includes Devendra Banhart...not sure how people can hate on this guy, but whatever. Maybe someone is a lil' jealous. Real mature, Jeff.) I've been discovering gem after gem on their blog, and that's just in the last few days. So, in addition to hearing the term "Invisible Oranges" for the first time (this is absolutely genius...search for it on the blog itself, I can't go into it here), one of those gems is the band CIRITH UNGOL.

Yes, this band is named after the pass through the Ephel Duath mountains above Minas Morgul, refuge of the King of the Dead, and is the only land route into the realm of Mordor. Honestly, the Deciblog didn't even have to say anything else--the band's name alone got me so excited that I downloaded it approximately five minutes after getting home from work.

I was right to be excited. Since I very actually worship the first four albums of Black Sabbath in a legitimately religious way, Cirith Ungol's album King of the Dead (1986) is currently blowing my mind all over my face, as my friend Walter says. The Deciblog featured it as their No. 4 Great Albums You Have Never Heard--definitely a list worth checking out. I'm talking about weirdly awesome vocals, fuzzed out wooly mammoth riffs, and DAMN but this record has some serious face-melters scattered throughout. They also do a metal version of Bach's Tocata in D Minor, THE MOST METAL FUGUE OF ALL!!! I'm talking about the entire piece here, not just the beginning, and it sounds amazing on a guitar that sounds like an angry beehive.

I compared this band earlier to Black Sabbath, but it was not meant to equate them at all. Cirith Ungol are one of those bands where another kickass band's influence is clear, but not overbearing. The aforementioned album also contains a LIVE TRACK that reveals that the band owes almost as much to the Clash in generating their sound as they do to Iommi, Ward, Osbourne and Butler. This band is doing something truly original and obliterative with the Sabbath's legacy, which is really just awesome beyond words. Just wait 'til the upward spiraling solo in the song "Cirith Ungol" carries you closer and closer to Mount Doom. You'll see what I mean.

It's Officially Fucking Cold Out

2008-11-19T19:15:00.002-05:00

But Slayer keeps me warm.

PAUL & LINDA MCCARTNEY - "RAM"

2008-11-17T09:45:00.003-05:00

I understand. I used to be 16 years old and ripping up my clothes and cutting out chunks of my hair for a new trim. I used to hate on the Beatles, and Pink Floyd, and the Grateful Dead, and all of this—as I then thought—sissy music from the 60’s. GUITAR SOLOS ARE FOR FASCISTS!

But you must, as you grow, come to accept and love the guitar solo! It is the natural course of things. Then again, I am extremely biased. I worship at the altar of George Harrison, Tony Iommi, Jimmy Page, Angus Young and J Mascis. At the altar of Ringo Starr, Bill Ward, John Bonham, Jerry Garcia, and Steven Drozd! Nonetheless, I’ve enjoyed the change from the old me to the new me. It felt like I was broadening my horizons, and there was certainly a lot of great stuff I was missing.

I’ve been getting completely re-obsessed by the Beatles again lately, and that is clearly the source of all of this. And that happens a lot—I listen to weird new stuff for a few months, and then for a month or two I listen to nothing but my Dad’s records. (These usually coincide with periods of underemployment.) WHAT’S MY POINT? Jeez, I forgot.

Oh, that’s right—it’s an amazing album.

Here is an egregiously overlooked album that might make some Lennon enthusiasts rethink Johnny-Boy’s position in the Beatles pantheon… Every song a gem on Paul’s second solo record. While he has made room for other musicians (Paul played all the instruments on his first, McCartney), including Linda McCartney, with whom he shares the artist credits, this record is a showcase of one of the greatest songwriters of all time. Never really got on board with Wings? Hated Memory Almost Full? WHO CARES?? This man gets a big fucking pass on everything he did after being in the Beatles and making Ram. Put this one on and you’ll forget all the other crap you have against Paul McCartney.

One of my favorite aspects of the McCartney mystique is his silliness, and this album doesn’t disappoint as far as that is concerned. In the song “3 Legs”, Paul sings

My dog he got three legs,

Your dog he got none.

In addition, it’s a really great dusty, ramshackle blues-down with buckets of reverb slathered on to great effect. For more silliness, see the close-up photo of two beetles having sex on the album’s back cover. Inside the gatefold are numerous images of Paul doing funny dances, making weird faces, and rocking out. Say what you will about him, Paul is my kind of guy.

Where McCartney started to hint at the power and rockingness of Paul’s solo self, Ram’s big beautiful Beatles arrangements attain a sad and goofy life of their own that really show off. This is one of those albums that make 1971 one of the most magikal years in music. Big ups to Greg Campaneelay for smashing me between the eyes with this beauty.

ELECTRIC WIZARD - COME MY FANATICS........

2008-11-12T10:58:00.001-05:00

An earth-shaking pack of evil motorcycles! Quiet drums drowned out by arcing geysers of bright black magma! One of the heaviest albums of the 90's...AND PERCHANCE OF ALL TIME!

ANGELS OF LIGHT - NEW MOTHER

2008-11-10T22:31:00.004-05:00

   For some reason I see both Michael Gira (Swans, the Angels of Light, Young God Records) and Wayne Coyne (The Flaming Lips) as giant, floating, bodyless heads, perhaps rising from the Pacific ocean during a Hawaiian sunset. Their music seems to tap into cosmic forces, and when we describe their music as sweeping, we mean literally that—as if they come with giant brooms and sweep away all the shit that distracts us from living beautiful lives.
   Right now I am listening to New Mother by The Angels of Light. It is the first Angels of Light album, which I can only describe as a vibrating purple and Kelly green animal who has learned English and murmurs intimately to you about its regrets, departures, havings, losings, openings, and friends. It is clutter-free, devastating, opening, centering, cycling, de-punishing. In short, it can be a gorgeous medicinal infidel for you in this mundane black hole of a city that we live in. It is for me.
   There is a dark gem at its center called "The Man With The Silver Tongue", and it is fucking incredible:

The man with
the silver tongue
is cutting off
my silver tongue

Etc. This is definitely one of the more disturbing songs on the album, and that is probably because it is about one of Gira's favorite visual artists, Rudolf Schwartzkogler. Go ahead and Google him. Discomfort is definitely a part of this album's experience.
BUT: songs like "Praise Your Name" and "Forever Yours" are emission nebulae, devotional songs, swelling with love and honest emotion. Angels of Light is not concerned with total demented gore and carnage, and Gira isn't interested in thrills alone; he is obviously an enormously gifted poet. Two of my favorite lyrics ever are on this album. The first is in the song "Angels of Light", a beautiful song that beats with a feeling of ascension:

you're not free now, you're not innocent,
but you're transparent, and you're right

The other is in the song "The Garden Hides the Jewel", about Marcel Duchamp's last work of art:

Pink dolphin lips accept the shape and shine with liquid innocence

All right, I can't say any more about this album. It's truly beautiful, but take heed of the photo that decorates this album's cover. It appears to be the mouth of some kind of cave, totally grown over with emerald-green vegetation. If you look closely, you'll see it's upside down. It's calling to you. Don't worry about coming back.

GZA - LIQUID SWORDS

2008-11-07T09:46:00.002-05:00

RZA, GZA and the Wu are some of the best creators of that vague creepiness in rap that reminds one of traveling through space. I don't know, maybe it's the echoes and the awesomely out-of-tune bass. These guys rap calmly, just because they have some shit to tell you. So I knew that GZA's solo career was probably more of the same, at least in the way that GZA was a blue and RZA was a red in the galactic purple of the Wu-Tang Clan. Well, I didn't really know until just a few minutes ago, when I started listening to GZA's Liquid Swords for the first time. ANYONE WHO SAYS 90's MUSIC SUCKS: I remind you that this incredible, incredible album is a product of that decade/generation...there's always good shit from every decade, but most of it ain't on the radio in the next one. So this album of silvery-blue bubbles, of calm subterranean rap, is definitely one you should listen to. Music of the future.

BASIC CHANNEL

2008-11-05T11:25:00.002-05:00

67 minutes of benevolent alien brain scans. Wear your headphones.

ARIEL PINK'S HAUNTED GRAFFITI 8 - "WORN COPY"

2008-11-03T07:15:00.004-05:00

A few years ago, when Tower Records still existed, I ran into a high school friend there. This guy, Pete, was basically my hero; while I was busy getting panic attacks from trig, his band was playing at the Knitting Factory. He’s a cool dude, and he used to turn me and my friends on to weird stuff like Necrophagist and Devo and Lightning Bolt and the Locust. So I didn’t know what to get at Tower that day and Pete, of course, had a suggestion. He recommended Worn Copy by Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffitti, which I bought and did not listen to for a long time. The cover was weird, the music was impenetrable to my 18-year-old punk ears, and something about it didn’t sit right with me. What I would come to realize, however, was that getting handed this CD by my buddy Pete that day many years ago was like looking for a dollar you threw out by accident and finding a VCR full of dirty jewels in the dumpster.

It’s lo-fi, meaning muddy and echo-y, but it’s not amateur in the least. This guy has written some of the best pop songs I’ve ever heard. He knows every move, every school of pop music, and uses them whenever he feels like it, at will. He takes the best of 80’s metal, doo-wop and Motown, and rock and…well, the genres he manipulates are irrelevant, because he creates his own. In short, he’s a goddamn professional.

Fortunately for us though, Pink’s charm rests fully on the quality of his songs and their unique sound, not on anything overthought or scientific. He’s weirdly funny, and completely insane. Only a songwriter with Ariel Pink’s ebullient creativity could write a greasy rhinestone rock song about his cat getting neutered, especially one that features the lines just cause you’re a cat don’t mean you ain’t a man. The name of the song? “Jules Lost His Jewels.”

Another track, “Artifact,” begins with the line I am the sun of the future, 25 years from now. I believe it whenever I hear it. Ariel Pink is writing for the future, or perhaps from the future. He speaks, in this song, as a sort of jaded prophet of a future consumerist society even worse than our own: son, I gotta tell ya bout the future see it’s a living hell, not at all like the golden age, they’re gonna kill yer comforts with worries, pertaining to your health, pertaining to ya future, pertaining to yo mama. That’s the kind of sad humor we get from Pink, and the almost frighteningly earnest/bizarre music ain’t just background, either. It’s the perfect music for pronouncement: swirling and electronic, with a chunky rotoscope lightsaber feel to the guitar that would date this song (80’s) if it weren’t brilliant-sounding.

There’s a lot not to like about Ariel Pink—I can understand that. Abrasive feedback, strange Tourette’s-like outpourings of lewdness and, as I said earlier, borderline-frightening weirdness. Admittedly, that last trait is one thing I love about Pink and his music. What makes all this acceptable, even DESIREABLE, though is that it is coupled with vocal harmonies and interlocking quadruple rainbow guitar overdubs that are so achingly beautiful they would make George Harrison’s eyeballs explode. Ariel Pink makes sad music, some of the saddest, in fact. But lying in bed at 2:30 in the morning listening to this stuff, you’d swear that loneliness tastes great.

KIDDUS I

2008-11-02T17:02:00.006-05:00

I tried to take the weekend off. I really tried.

Some of you readers may know Kiddus I from his brief role in the greatest movie of all time, a movie that every human being should see--Rockers. Anyone who watches the scene in which Kiddus knocks out a take of one of his only international reggae hits (included on the Rockers soundtrack--mad propzz to Daddio for that one!!!), "Graduation in Zion", will be instantly convinced of the merits of reggae/rasta culture. More on this wonderful film later. If you're a zealot for another religion, don't watch it. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Here's an interview I found today with the man himself, Kiddus I. Chock full of rasta wisdom, upfulness, and amazing pictures.

Roots rock reggae. Jah Live.

NEW FEATURE -- MAKEOUT JAM OF THE WEEK

2008-10-31T11:37:00.006-04:00

The Makeout Jam is potentially the most important key to turning our global society from one of greed to one of total love!

The Makeout Jam is a cultural staple of our times! Teenagers everywhere achieve ultimate happiness basking in its warmth!

The Makeout Jam happens to be my favorite musical genre!

Ladies and Gentlemen, here's to the Makeout Jam!

Makeout Jam of the Week: M83 - "kim & jessie"

This one is definitely in the running for Makeout Jam of the CENTURY. From their most recent album, saturdays=youth, an entire album of Makeout Jams!!! Can't recommend this one highly enough, folks. ALSO--DC-area people: this band will be playing at the Black Cat on Thursday, Nov. 13th!! Go see them. I'll see you there.

LIL' WAYNE IS THE NEW CREEPY JESUS

2008-10-31T10:28:00.003-04:00

Listen to the bass on "A Milli" and tell me It's not true.

FLEET FOXES

2008-10-30T10:08:00.003-04:00

FLEET FOXES! Where have I been on this one? I am a procrastinator by nature, so I tend to miss the boat on a lot. For example, and maybe as your faithful blogger I shouldn't be revealing this, but--[whispers]--I didn't listen to Animal Collective 'til Strawberry Jam...
Yes, that's a truism. Meaning it's true. Nonetheless, we have an album and a band to discuss, so enough about me. These guys are beautiful. I imagine this is what your parents sound like to you when you're a small blanketed baby, Fleet Foxes have that kind of blood-borne familiarity. There's nothing quite like a bunch of grown men letting loose in three-part harmony...first you're thinking, "Oh, OK, beards. They're dirty and uncouth." Then they open their mouths simultaneously and sound like a tri-tonal trumpet leading an orchestra of bells and BAM! You've got an instant sunrise soundtrack. And isn't that what life is all about, when you get down to it? It's an elfin March morning, everyone! Spring is coming!!

BURIAL

2008-10-29T13:16:00.010-04:00

Maybe it's just my infantile yearning for the oceanic sensation of the womb, or maybe it's because I've switched from drinking coffee to tea, but something has made my mind go all mooshy for dreamy, drifting, warm, synth-washed stuff lately. Some of Flying Lotus' stuff fits that bill, but even his songs that don't are relentlessly awesome and, while not akin to merging with a hot bath, will take you on a weird-but-catchy prenatal journey. Both of his albums--1983 and Los Angeles--are worth getting your hands on, especially the latter. More on the Lotus later...he's gonna have to be a longer post. Burial's latest record, Untrue, does fit the aforementioned bill. It is darkly beautiful--surprisingly so--even if you enter the arrangement expecting the best. The lyrics toy with dancefloor inanity, but that seems to mesh well (for some reason...) with the ghost ship synths and skeleton beats. Each track is a sticky hive of murmuring bliss, a barely-conscious sonic revelation. This record will take you underground, and, as I said before, what lurks there is very surprising. All in all, this isn't yer average dance record. Put it on the next time it rains and make sure you stand in a bucket, 'cause you're gonna fucking melt.

ROCKNOCEROS

2008-10-28T11:03:00.006-04:00

Rocknoceros is a children's band--BUT, they are a children's band that sounds a lot like early-Who, Mod-ish, Unit 4+2-style acoustic British Pop. They have an album called "Dark Side of the Moon Bounce". They have a song called "I Wish We Used the Metric System". Some of their songs--"Dear Abby", "Virginia", "Gravity"--are...goddamit, they're just really choice jam-o's. They write articulate, catchy songs that teach kids Spanish, counting, and, most importantly, to participate in their local rock scene!! They are firm believers in the intelligence and ability of children!! YES!!!

An excerpt from "Col. Purple Turtle":

Colonel Purple Turtle

Keeps a Purple Turtle journal

Some of their songs, like "The Train Song" or "Wee Go Potty", might be a little too kid-oriented for more mature audiences. That said, the latter of those features a sick fucking chorus. Here are the lyrics of that chorus:

Wee go potty

Wee wee wee wee go potty

Oh, and there's a dreamy, Pink Floyd/Flaming Lips-worthy keyboard solo, too. Please check them out. You can listen free on their website.

Special thanks to Becca Bird for turning me on to this'n!!

STARDEATH AND WHITE DWARFS

2008-10-27T14:58:00.009-04:00

Anyone who enjoys weirdos from Oklahoma city owes it to themselves to check out the myspace of a band called Stardeath and White Dwarfs, in particular the track "Point It At Another". In fact, anyone who enjoys weirdos, or laser orgies, or awesome, awesome, AWESOME space rock does as well. Yes, their name is a mouthful and that can be a hurdle in gaining new fans, but ***DO NOT*** let that stop you from listening to this band. You may be saying, "Why didn't they just name the band STARDEATH and be done with it? That's totally sick!!" Well, you're right, but it's irrelevant. Nirvana is a stupid name for a band, too. I'm not saying these guys are the next Nirvana, but I WILL say that they are opening for The Flaming Lips at their New Years Eve OKC show. Did I mention the laser orgies?

Poster for OKC New Years Show......Wonderous.

Also, here's band-member Dennis on the band's name, for you curious readers out there: "I had a dream that me and Casey were flying on a dying star through the centre of the Earth. We came out of one side, and we were at the dawn of creation, getting ready to play a show in front of God and the Devil that was set to open up the new universe. Once we realised that a dying star was a white dwarf, the rest was easy."

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE

2008-10-26T17:19:00.002-04:00

Every year, when the Fall rolls around, just betwixt the Moon When the Deer Paw the Earth and the Moon of Popping Trees, my brain stops running circles around itself and I find myself listening to Six Organs of Admittance. Generally, Six Organs is a guy named Ben Chasny and kind of reminds me of a Volcano-Rim Sacrifice, or a Dying Sun-Core Revolution, or maybe a Blood Red Lighthouse or an Energy Beacon atop the Pyramid of Cheops. Then there are the songs that are so deeply intimate, just Chasny and his guitar, that they drive you to make music, or at least in my case, to pine for musical prowess. Every single one of this guy's albums is worth checking out, as are all the bands he's involved with (Current 93, Comets On Fire, August Born). Collect all his split-7"s and CD-R albums. Brew yourself a very very strong cup of tea, put Six Organs in your headphones, and watch the universe draw up her veil.