silence is a rhythm too
Tuesday 8/31
Big tour news today - on October 19th at First Avenue is the kick ass double bill of Interpol and The Secret Machines. Interpol's Antics is out on Sept. 28th, preceded by a single for Slow Hands featuring mixes by Dan The Automator and Britt Daniels from Spoon. Fantastic.
New Release Tuseday
There are a few BIG new releases today - Bjork's "voices only" Medulla, Jill Scott's long awaited Beautifully Human - Words & Sounds 2, The Libertines' self titled sophomore effort, the return of The Blue Nile with High.
Sunday 8/29
New mp3s today...
The Finn Brothers' Homesick is from their new LP Everyone Is Here. You aren't getting anything ground breaking or new from Neil and Tim - these guys have always crafted intelligent, melodic rock that your parents might like. This tune is has a bit of country rock flavor - it features some nice steel guitar, lovely piano and a big string accompaniment, as well as the usual expert harmonizing.
Lali Puna's Alienation is a track from their latest remix EP (for the song Micronomic). Anticon recording artist Alias handles the remix of this track, and instead of abstract hip hop he crafts a nice bit of glitchy ambient pop - hand-clappy beats, mournful keys, Valerie's vocals floating in and out of the mix. It's a nice little EP, also featuring a remix from Boom Bip.
Neotropic's Riz Mazlen has been at it for about a decade now, releasing a bunch of records on NinjaTune's now defunct side label nTone. Her latest LP White Rabbits is out now on Mush Records - it was a very pleasant surprise to learn that the album was largely recorded here in the Twin Cities, and features several key players from the local post rock scene including Dosh's Martin Dosh and Lateduster's JG Everest. Inch Inch is a lovely guitar and piano driven tune that drifts prettily along until it fades into a couple of minutes of noise and hiss. Watching Riz go from the hardcore electro and beats of her earliest stuff to the mellow, more organic tracks she does now has been cool. A very nice record.
Wagon Christ's Kwikwidetrax is from his latest album Sorry I Make You Lush It's Luke Vibert's 3rd album in a year (following Yoseph and Kerrier District) and some people might think he's stretching it a bit thin. Personally I really dig what he does with his different personas, and on Kwikwidetrax he does the loopy sci fi hip hop thing. The tune starts off with a thumping house tempo bass drum and some toasting and suddenly melts into a bumping hip hop beat, then slowly starts adding squelchy jazz funk synths and the usual odd vocal samples - the clincher for me is the deftly cut string sample he uses - it's a beauty. Yeah, it ain't nothing new, but damn it sure is funky.
Saturday 8/28
It ain't exactly The Rub but it's better than nothing at all...good to have you back.
Friday 8/27
Handsome Boy Modelling School are set to release their second album White People on November 9th. As usual it features a bunch of guests - Franz Ferdinand vocalist Alex Kapranos, Del Tha Funkee Homosapien, Jack Johnson, Pharell Williams and Cat Power - yeah, you read that right, Cat Power. But wait - also on it are Kid Koala, Mike Patton, Barrington Levy, The RZA, Mike Shinoda & Chester Bennington, Lord Finesse, Jazzy Jay, the dudes from Mars Volta and on Greatest Mistake, John Oates - yes the moustachioed one, Paula Frazer and Brit newbie Jamie Cullum. It will also continue to feature spoken interludes by Father Guido Sarducci. I can't wait to hear this one.
Duran Duran's new album is called Astronaut and will be released October 12th. The band has been working with R'n'B producer Dallas Austin - i've heard a pretty bad recording of one new tune (Taste The Summer) and my interest has been piqued - OK, I can't f###ing wait!
Novemer 9th sees the release of the 20 song Screaming Trees retrospective Ocean Of Confusion. It was compiled with the help of singer Mark Lanegan (who's popping up on a lot of records these days), and contains 2 previously unreleased songs.
Tuesday 8/24
It's new releases day and there is a bunch of stuff coming out - Clinic's Winchester Cathedral, Guided By Voices' final LP Half Smiles Of The Decomposed, Craig Armstrong's Piano Works, The Finn Brothers' Everyone Is Here, Inouk's No Danger, Mouse On Mars' Radical Connector, and Twilight Singers' ...Presents I Love You which is a cool collection of cover tunes. On the reissue front, the first 3 Adam & The Ants albums (Dirk Wears White Sox, Kings Of The Wild Frontier, Prince Charming) get the remastered / bonus cuts treatment and are released in Europe today.
Sunday 8/22
Digging In The Crate - Volume 3
It's time for another bunch of tunes from the crate of '80s 45's...
Paul Gardiner was the bass player in Gary Numan's band Tubeway Army. Stormtrooper In Drag was a 1981 solo single that featured Gary on vocals (as well as a co-writer credit). It's a mellow, hypnotic bass-riff driven tune with Gary's mouth-full-of-mush drone delivery helping give it that extra oomph. I've always loved this tune - my brother and I used to mock the vocals on it all the time, but I still think that it's a great "lost gem" of the new wave era.
Endgames were a Scottish four piece formed in the early '80s and featured former Simple Minds drummer Brian McGee. Their debut single was We Feel Good (Future's Looking Fine), a pop tune in the vein of what bands like ABC and Haircut 100 were doing. Featuring some nice piano and horns and a big catchy chorus, it failed to make a dent on the charts. They had a hit with the song First, Last, For Everything and went on to record 2 albums, but never achieved much success.
Way Of The West I can tell you nothing about - and neither can Google. Their debut single was Don't Say That's Just For White Boys. It's another catchy, funky new wave pop tune that has a cool sax infused ska breakdown in the middle. I thought at the time that it was worthy of chart placement, but of course it didn't make it. I bought the follow up single See You Shake but it too failed to make the charts and I never heard of them again.
Kirk Brandon is best known for his band Spear Of Destiny, with whom he still tours and records today. Before SOD he was in Theatre Of Hate, a blistering political post-punk band in the vein of Killing Joke (and featuring future Cult guitarist Billy Duffy). Propaganda was the b-side to their near hit single Do You Believe In The Westworld and features a blazing punk riff and Kirk's typically grandiose vocals. I actually prefer this song to the A side - it packs such intensity. Also of note - this recording was produced by Mick Jones from The Clash.
Saturday 8/21
A New Name In Downtempo - kmotiv
In what is a first for this blog I'm pleased to introduce a new name on the downtempo - electronic music scene. kmotiv is 20 year old Kevin Kelsey. Born in Arizona and now based in the college town of Fayetteville, Arkansas, he says music has always played a big role in his life. Upon discovering electronica he was hooked, and has been writing and producing since then. His biggest influence? "Portishead. Without a doubt, they have been my biggest influence. In a way, they opened my eyes up to electronic music, and showed me that it
doesn't have to
be cold and emotionless. It can have as much variety and feeling as any
other genre. It's all about how much you put into something, you'll get the
same amount out." As for some of his other favorites, he lists Amon Tobin, Massive Attack, Dntel, Metric, The Dust Brothers and Deathcab For Cutie. When I asked about dream collaborations / remixes Amon Tobin came up again - "I'm thinkin' Amon Tobin, Rob Dougan or Faultline. They're all incredibly
innovative musicians that are constantly pushing the limits of their own
respective genres. I feel that I could learn a great deal working with any
one of them!" I'm always curious about what people's fave records are, so I asked him to name some of his - "In no particular order as I cannot judge one above another. They all fit in
different contexts of my life: Weezer - Self Titled (blue album), Massive Attack - Mezzanine, Deathcab For Cutie - The Photo Album, The Crystal Method - Vegas, and Mandalay - Solace."
He's currently recording his debut album (running title The Abstraction Agenda) for release on October 19th. "It's a self released album that will be
available through kmotiv.com, cdbaby.com and a few other independent cd
shops around the net. There's also a limited edition bonus disc with all
preorders of the album. The disc will include several remixes/rarities and
collaborations from the kmotiv world. Preordering will be available at
kmotiv.com in late September. Keep your eyes peeled..."
Check out some tunes -
Flowing is blippy electro-hop.
Def Thorns is Thievery Corporation style dub.
Where I'm Comin' From is moody instrumental hip hop.
Emergence is some very nice ambient downtempo.
Makeshift is abstract hip hop.
Be sure to check out the music section of his website where he's got about 30 tunes available for download, including a couple of Portishead remixes.
Thursday 8/19
I have a little secret to share with you - for a couple of months now I've been running an "mp3 only" version of this blog - silence is a rhythm two - geddit? I've been putting tracks up on an almost daily basis (instead of just 3 or 4 a week like I do here). It's a pretty diverse mix of stuff, so feel free to wander on over and check it out...
Hoboken's finest Yo La Tengo are launching a 17 date mini tour called "Tour of Swing States to Try and Help John Kerry Get Elected". The format may or may not be a "variety show", with all kinds of special gusts and performances along the way. Check the link for dates & cities and be sure to get out and support the band and the cause.
The return of Death In Vegas - a new album, Satan's Circus, on their own label Drone Records, out in the UK October 11. Apparently there are no gust vocalists this time around, and the music is "a stripped down bass and keyboards" format. A limited number will come with a bonus disc called Live At Brixton.
Wednesday 8/18
Diminutive heavy metal shrieker Ronnie James Dio (Rainbow, Black Sabbath) has forced Cali psychedelic folk rockers dios to change their name to Dios Malos. Apparently you and I can't be trusted to tell the difference between dios and Dio!. Bassist JP Cabellaro had this to say about it all - 'We're up against rainbows and magic, and when it comes to casting spells we're barely level 3 musicians with nothing but cheap magic missiles and plate mail armor to protect us from the wrath of eight-headed hydra law firms with unlimited mana and 100-sided dice." Alright-y! Just when you thought the biz couldn't get any more moronic...
Tuesday 8/17
There are a few interesting new releases on shelves today - the return of all girl hip hoppers Northern State - the album is called All City and features DJ Muggs, ?uestlove and Pete Rock. Decadence is the name of the album by Head Automatica, a collaboration between Dan The Automator and Daryl Palumbo. It's a dance - rock hybrid thing. Finally today is the release of the seminal double disc The Name Of This Band Is Talking Heads - never before on CD, and with a bunch of extra tracks. I own the double vinyl of this and it is a HUGE double live set. Dare I say, it might even be better than Stop Making Sense. If you are a fan you need to check this stuff out!
Monday 8/16
If you've checked out the links to the left you've no doubt seen Boblog. This is the blog of one time Twin Cities rock god Bob Mould - you know, Hüsker Dü, Sugar, solo albums, the Daily Show theme song. Anyway, I've been reading his blog this year, and in between stories about his personal life and politics he mentions the music that he likes - Dykehouse, Gerling, Metric and British Sea Power are all mentioned. We like a lot of the same stuff. He has also recently joined the ranks of us mp3 bloggers, and has started posting cool stuff. This week he has a killer tune from another great Twin Cities band The Suburbs - worth checking out!
Sunday 8/15
New mp3s today...
Dykehouse's Midrange album has been out for a few months now, and the music blogosphere seems to have largely slept on this great record. Michael Dykehouse's last album was full of electronic instrumentals - very IDM. This new one is a radical departure in style and sound. This time it's all about the dense, shoe gazing sound of the early '90s - lots of huge guitar noise, and Michael sings on most tracks. Lost Holiday is an uptempo rocker that is this year's version of My Bloody Valentine's seminal Soon - dance-y beats, thick buzzing guitars and a similarly melodic appeal to MBV's tune. I highly recommend both of his albums - you'll be amazed at how different they are.
dios are a 5 piece from California who do the blissed out, folky rock thing. Reviews compare them to the Beach Boys, the Beatles and Grandaddy (who they toured with a bunch), and those are pretty accurate comparisons to make. Their 2003 (home recorded) debut has elements of all of those bands, and on You Make Me Feel Uncomfotrable they add a touch of Neil Young to the mix - it's the plaintive vocals, the sci-fi keys and a gorgeous melody that make this a big tune. Be sure to check out their website for some twisted fun.
Nouvelle Vague's brilliant album of jazzy bossa nova covers of new wave classics has been getting major airplay on my stereo. It's a superbly conceived and executed record that I've already raved about here before, so I won't bore you with more hyperbole - check out their ultra cool version of Depeche Mode's incredibly catchy pop nugget Just Can't Get Enough.
Lizzy Mercier Descloux was part of NYC's No-Wave movement of the late '70s and early '80s. She blended dance and funk with arty rock and poetry (Patti Smith was once a flat mate), releasing several albums. Her albums of that era have been reissued over the last year by a newly reborn Ze Records. She passed away earlier this year after a year long fight with cancer. Tumour is an amusing remake of the old classic Fever - "when you put your arms around me you give me a tumour that's so hard to bear". It's funky, skronky fun.
Tuesday 8/10
Some news tidbits...
There's a new TV On The Radio EP on Oct.12th, and it will feature a cover of Yeah Yeah Yeahs' Modern Romance. The Polyphonic Spree's drummer Brian Teasley was nabbed by the FBI on suspicion of having a bomb in his suitcase last Thursday in Dallas. They blew his bag apart and discovered it was just a microphone. The Pixies are talking about doing a new album which could see the light of day sometime next year. It's all just talk for now...
I've had precious little time to write much about music lately, so let me give a quick run down on some of the stuff I've been digging the last couple of weeks -
M83's US release of Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts, am amazing record of electronic shoe gazing music - think a much grungier. louder & harder Ulrich Schnauss. Incidentally, Ulrich's album from last year (A Strangely Isolated Place) has just been given a US release this week, and comes with a second CD of all new material. Go and buy it - it's huge. The Polyphonic Spree's Together We Are Heavy doesn't quite pack the punch of their debut for me, but it's still a pretty good album - a further refinement of their crazy multi colored rock symphony sound. Ozomatli's Street Signs is a a sweet mix of Latino cumbia, salsa, rock en español and hip hop, all topped off with some fantastic strings, and cool special guests like Eddie Palmieri, David Hidalgo, Cut Chemist and Chali 2na. I've already raved about the Cut Copy and Gerling albums - two different takes on the dance rock thing. If you dug Martina Topley-Bird's contributions to the earliest Tricky records you will more than likely dig Anything, her solo debut. It treads a lot of the same ground - crusty atmospheric beat music and blue-sy rock. And a tremendous voice. I've been digging The Concretes' self titled. It's got that Phil Spector wall of sound thing going, and it's also very VU meets Mazzy Star meets the Jesus and Mary Chain. The reissues keep coming - rockin' the box right now is Refused's The Shape Of Punk To Come, Japan's Adolescent Sex and Assemblage and A Certain Ratio's Sextet.
Sunday 8/8
New mp3s today - Classic 12"s
Inspired by my recent forays into the world of vinyl ripping I give you some oldies from my 12" collection...
Set The Tone's Dance Sucker is a fantstically crunk punk funk number from 1982 - big disco beats, chikka chikka guitar and a seriously squelchy bass line with major ranting on the vocals. This tune blew me away back in the day and failed to make any kind of impression on the charts - I thought it deserved to be a big hit. It still sounds good today, fitting into the whole post punk dance rock thing. This version is the 12" remix by Francois Kevorkian, who is still successfully at it today.
Robert Palmer is best known for his hits with the Power Station, and for his stretch of solo hits in the mid '80s - you know, Addicted To Love etc.. A lot of folks don't know that he also dabbled in dance floor electronica in the early years of the decade, and You Are In My System is his stomping electro cover of the band The System's signature tune. I own a few of these 12"s from that era, and they are all fantastic and experimental, especially the b sides. This era of his career, between the bluesy stuff of the early years and the more crunchy rock of the latter years is still my fave period.
Felt's Ballad Of The Band is a catchy little number from '86 - it reminds me a lot of Lloyd Cole and the Commotions, but with Lou Reed on vocals instead. It's an uptempo guitar pop tune with some great organ, and has that classic Brit pop sound. These guys were one of Creation Records' great hopes at the time, but they never achieved big success.
Edwyn Collins' Seventies Night is not an oldie - it just sounds like one. This is a remix by Deadly Avenger, and it is typical of his style - crusty as hell beats and big chunky bass. This is a big disco number, and I can imagine people roller skating to this one. Mark E Smith from The Fall provided guest vocals on the original, and they are the only vocals left on this mix. Good, fun mix.
Friday 8/6
R.I.P. Rick James, Superfreak, age 56.
Thursday 8/5
Music mogul Tommy Mottola has taken on the task of staging a Broadway musical version of Pink Floyd's The Wall. It's an interesting idea, especially since Roger Waters will be writing the score and the story.
This year's Prince's Trust gig in the UK in November is another live bill that's right up my alley. The evening is titled "Produced By Trevor Horn", and stars ABC, Art of Noise, Belle and Sebastian, Buggles, Lisa Stansfield, Pet Shop Boys, Propaganda, Seal, and Yes. There are also rumors of involvement by Frankie Goes To Hollywood - just rumors. Back in the day I bought records just because they had Trevor's name on them, and I still have a great affinity for his sound and a lot of those bands. What a great gig.
Wednesday 8/4
There are a few absolutely smoking shows coming to Minneapolis in the next month or two. On September 9th at the Quest is The Killers with Ambulance Ltd. - promises to be a fun show. I already mentioned the Scissor Sisters at The Fine Line on September 16th. Sept.17 at the Quest is Keane with openers French Kicks. Sept 22 brings Snow Patrol to the Quest, then on the 26th it's Mouse On Mars, Ratatat, Macha and The JR Boys - what an assortment that is. Sept 29th it is the enormous triple bill of rock's hippest bands Franz Ferdinand, Graham Coxon and The Future Heads - if I miss that one you may as well shoot me.
Monday 8/2
In what has to be the shocker of the day the Beta Band have announced they are breaking up before the year is over, citing a lot of work over 8 years and not much commercial success. Too bad in light of the fact that their curent album is their best yet.
Mark Your Calendars Time
If you live in the Twin Cities you need to know that the fantastic Scissor Sisters will be appearing at the Fine Line on September 16th - they are supposed to put on one hell of a fun show, so make sure to get your tickets!
Season 2 of VH1's Bands Reunited is back on September 5th with a whole new slate of bands. Host Aamer will try and get the members of New Kids On The Block, ABC, The Motels, Haircut 100 and The English Beat to get back together for the one off gig. I am very excited about ABC and Haircut 100 - two of my faves of that era. WOO-HOO!
Sunday 8/1
New mp3s today
Martina Topley-Bird released her solo debut Quixotic in 2003 in the UK to some pretty good reviews. It never got a US release until this last week when I happened to see it at the record store - I hadn't noticed it on any of the upcoming release stuff I check out. It isn't exactly the same record tho' - it's called Anything and it's 3 songs lighter than Quixotic. I really like it - it varies between the kind of beat laden hip hop stuff she did with Tricky (who's on 2 tracks here) and some swampier space blues stuff, as well as a bit of rock flava. Need One is definitely the harder side - it features Josh Homme on guitar and Mark Lanegan handles additional vocals. It's got funky beats,and a great rockin' chorus build up. The rest of the record is very nice too...
The Future Heads are a British 4 piece who have just released their self titled debut in the UK. These guys rock - the singer sounds a lot like Gryff from the Super Furry Animals, and the music is an amalgam of early '80s mod rock and new wave. Decent Days & Nights is like The Jam mixed with a bit of XTC - super sharp angular guitars, lovely harmonizing and a killer chorus. 2:31 of power pop perfection.
Radio 4 are preparing to release their major label debut in a month or two. It's definitely a much more dance oriented affair - a bunch more electro beats and synths. Some people will not like it as much - I'm not sure how I feel about it yet. Rise Up is a non-album track from the first single Party Crashers, and it's pretty typical Radio 4 fare - edgy disco with scratchy guitars and nice percussion.
This week's flashback is a real oldie from Japan. They made their debut in 1978 with the album Adolescent Sex, a blend of glam rock, disco and lots of spacy synth action. If you've only ever heard the band's '80s hits this music might surprise you - it really rocks. David Sylvian's voice is a raw and gruff. Television is a nine minute epic of funky space rock that features a seriously groovy guitar riff, a big synth action break and builds to a screaming guitar solo at the end. The band largely pooh-poohs this early stuff, and it is so different from the music that they hits with - I think you can hear elements of what was to come. Personally I dig the old stuff, and have really enjoyed buying the reissues of these records that have been coming out this year. They all feature bonus tracks, and most of them have videos too. Fascinating stuff.