I haven't done one of these entries in quite some time, and Stolen Recordings in London just hooked me up with a handful of good tracks, so here we are again. Let's Wrestle, who I mentioned before, kick it off with the opening line "I Wish I Was In Hot Chip." They're followed by the first of six Stolen Recordings bands, a noisy trio called Screaming Tea Party. Filling out the other five are Tap Tap, The Ghosts, Jesus Licks, Pete and the Pirates, and Oxen of the Sun. Finishing it off, The Whip supply supply a little electro-pop and Hot Chip take their own spin on The Aliens' track "Robot Man", from the album I told you about. Enjoy.
Let's Wrestle came to the attention of uber-cool indie label Marquis Cha Cha early in 2007, and recorded their debut 45 for the label later that year. They describe said release as a "coherent, thrilling art-pop rush". -D.I.S.
"So here we have a good thing; Stolen Recordings are a label with an action plan for the UK rock underground. Hell yes, and here’s to a genuinely independent label." -Art Rocker
I used to go see Bring Back The Guns a handful of years ago when they were touring around the state with Dallas rock bands like the Toadies, Baboon, and the Burden Brothers. They were called The Groceries back then, and they were one of very few good bands in Houston that were worth road-tripping to see. After years of touring, a few line-up changes, and trying multiple times (in vain) to get an album recorded and released, these guys are finally starting to get their due. BBTG lead singer Matt Brownlie got sick of trying to export their music to other record labels, so he just joined forces with Devendra Banhart cohort Jana Hunter to create their own label, Feow Records. So far they have released the BBTG album Dry Futures, along with another good one that I told you about previously.
"Bring Back The Guns is a messy experiment in taking pop and punk tropes to the classical museum hoping to get thrown out. There's a mathematical precision that belies the boiling underneath, a surface of timing and beats, wordplay, performance, persona that performs the same function as a paper plate during an eclipse. BBTG twists its primal screams into exquisite sculpture and invites you to knock over the ropes on your way to touch the art. BBTG is anger and love and other short words with long definitions: pop, math-rock, post-Pavement, anti-cool. Its sound somehow simultaneously references elements of such disparate bands as Hot Snakes, The Shins, The Pixies and Fugazi on the young quartet's debut album Dry Futures.
Previously, Matthew Brownlie, Blake Powell, Thomas Clemmons and Erik Bogle (ex-The Octopus Project) were the award-winning Groceries, and in five years they released two albums. In 2004 Ryan Hull joined on bass, and the band became known as Bring Back The Guns. Soon they were freaking everybody out in their hometown Houston, TX scene. The music got uglier, the beats got faster, and the anger got redder. All the while, the praise got louder -- winning the Best Indie Rock award in the Houston Press in 2005 and 2003, with nominations every year from 2001-present."
“Bring Back The Guns is making some of the most original music in the city. The band's music crackles with energy and makes the heart race. It isn't simple, and it's often weird, but these are the very reasons it engages you. You listen, you try to piece together what is being said and why, and then the key changes or the song stops and the rug is pulled out from under you.”
"I never planned to write a review of The Gossip, but I cannot let a show like theirs pass without comment. This is my 21st Reading Festival, and I've witnessed some extraordinary performances in that time, of which my absolute favourite was Porno for Pyros in 1992, which featured Perry Farrell breaking off to berate the hecklesome crowd. Extract: "Listen to me. I'm 37 years old, and I'm cooler than any of you." It's an accolade bigger than Beth Ditto herself when I tell you that The Gossip are right up alongside that.
Beth bounds breathless from the airport in a borrowed purple dress which is five sizes too small and soon turns into a top when she wriggles a few times and it rides up over her ample hips (and eventually comes off altogether), a matching disc-shaped party hat and beautiful Siouxsie eye make-up. She apologises for being late, and tears through a scorching set which punctuates The Gossip's own raw, minimal garage-disco-blues-riot-grrl thing with snatches of "Rehab" ("So much respect for Amy Winehouse"), a self mockingly gluttonous adaptation of Haddaway's "What Is Love" ("When is lunch? Baby I'm hungry, I'm hungry, for more..."), and a bit of bitching which brings a mixture of boos and cheers: "As Madonna said, music makes the people come together. Although I'm not convinced that she said it. Someone else wrote it, and told her to sing it."
Stamping barefoot so that her cellulite ripples rhythmically and screaming with both passion and precision, she proves that her voice doesn't only possess that nebulous quality "soul" but also sheer technique. (There's never a bum note.) In a different era, she'd have been a disco diva. The fat lady sings.
They close with a Stanley knife-sharp version of "Standing in the Way of Control" which is so thrilling that you forget that you've heard it too many times, and even forget how much you want to punch that kid on the Skins trailer clean out of that bloody "field of dreams we're dancing in". And that is really saying something."
"Austin, TX natives AM Syndicate formed in the spring of 2004 when Omar Chavez, Vince Durcan, and Golfball got together to create their own brand of jangle-y, cavernous indie-pop.
Liberation, out November 13 on Novastar Records, is AM Syndicate’s second full length album. Erik Wofford recorded and produced the album (who also recorded Voxtrot, The Black Angles and Explosions in the Sky). Although the band has modern influences like Blonde Redhead and Neutral Milk Hotel, they do not betray their roots and draw in aspects of Simon and Garfunkel and even New Order. This musical synergy creates an accessible sound both remiscent of late-70s England, as well as their Austin home.
In contrast to earlier releases, Liberation, is an attempt to do just what the title states: create a sense of freedom and fun, like when you were in middle school and danced around the room with your hands up in the air. The melody and beats will make the room smile and invigorate people to have fun. Lyrically, the approach to Liberation is more serious. It is a collection of sincere and sobering observations."
"What has distinguished the Austin, Texas-based AM Syndicate from its inception is the group's ability to articulate the contemporary shades of human experience in all its violence, volatility, beauty and tranquility through art's most fluid medium: sound. AM Syndicate pulls together those ideas, those thoughts, those emotions, and never forgets to touch it off with delicate brilliance."
AM Syndicate will be all over the place for the next month. You can check out their tour schedule and hear more from Liberationat myspace, and order the album at Nova Star Records.
It's been too long since I've seen a show at Stubb's indoor, so long in fact that I'm not even sure when the last time was. This all changes on Tuesday night. Dax Riggs, having just released his first "solo" album, will be performing at Stubb's indoor after the Stars/Lemurs gig on the outside stage.
If you haven't heard of Dax Riggs, he's the dude from Deadboy & the Elephantmen. If you haven't heard of Deadboy & the Elephantmen, then you should go pick up We Are Night Sky and turn it on.
Here is something that NPR offered up on Riggs' new album, We Sing of Only Blood or Love:
"Dax Riggs spent years toiling in glam and metal bands few have heard of — Deadboy and the Elephantmen, Acid Bath — which turns out to have been great practice for his latest incarnation as a creepy swamp goth who really, really loves David Bowie.
The Houma, Louisiana-based singer-songwriter lays on the unearthly, death-obsessed vibe with a trowel; no one, even a former metal singer, sounds this creepy by accident. And yet Riggs' solo debut is a fine, mostly convincing mixture of classic rock, old-school country-blues and self-conscious revivalism a la The White Stripes. If Iggy Pop had been raised in a swamp, he'd probably sound like this."
I found out about Quintron & Miss Pussycat less than ten minutes ago. That's exactly long enough to type a few words, post a few links, and get a handful of their tracks stuck in my head. The duo hail from New Orleans, where Mr. Quintron creates his analog/electronic/organ dance music.
"The Quintron / Miss Pussycat experience is one of barely controlled electronic chaos, "Swamp-Tech" beats, small explosions, incredible clothes, and entertaining puppet stories. You can see them perform regularly at the Spellcaster Lodge in New Orleans, Louisiana or on one of their many tours around the world. This act somehow has equal relevance in sleazy nightclubs, pizza restaurants, and university lecture halls."
"Recorded live directly to a two-track recorder, Swamp Tech boasts some of Quintron's most raucous-yet-danceable songs yet, including the bouncy "Witch in the Club" and "Swamp Buggy Baddass," a percolating rave-up that celebrates the badass in everyone, as well as Quintron's souped-up organ. Meanwhile, a cover of Kiss' "God of Thunder" sounds like an electrical storm set to a dance beat in Quintron's hands. Miss Pussycat's sweet-and-sour vocals and percussion contributions are even more tightly integrated into the overall sound and feel of Swamp Tech than they were on previous releases."
"Swamp Tech is a joyous affair of grime dance minimalism. Along with his muse Miss Pussycat, Quintron churns out kick-ass grooves that are something like the crunk of the underground rock 'n' soul scene. Natives of the Big Easy at the time of the album's recording (like thousands of others, they're now homeless), they really succeed at transposing the raw, enchanting feeling of the southeastern United States. It's alternately gaudy and sinister, and entirely infectious. Quintron, the baddest one-man band in America, is sure to move your ass and make you laugh."
Quintron & Miss Pussycat will be in Austin on Halloween night, doing their thing on the inside stage at Emo's. Details for that show are right here, and a video of what you might expect to see is below.
Masonic is an Austin-via-Oklahoma City indie-pop quartet comprised of three brothers and two friends: drummer Brian Mason, keyboardist and guitarist Kevin Mason, guitarist John Mason, bassist Trey D'Amico and vocalist Eryn Gettys. Armed with vintage keyboards and guitars, a vinyl collection, and some tape loops, Masonic recorded their new album Things I Am Guilty Of during the spring and summer of 2007. It arrives on the heels of 2006's Without Warning, which was named one of 2006's Austin Top 10 release by the Austin Chronicle. These five musicians create feel-good indie-pop music in the same vein as bands like Thrushes and Sister Vanilla. Other points of reference include Yo La Tengo and Stereolab.
The Mason brothers moved to Austin in 1995 and trudged along for years in the underground before Never Stood A Chance — the debut album of their newly christened incarnation, Masonic — dropped in 2002. Despite its lo-fi sound, the album scored airplay on "The Next Big Thing," a program on the Austin modern rock radio station KROX (101.5 FM). That little bit of radio support, along with a simmering word-of-mouth buzz, garnered Masonic some SXSW appearances and a healthy bit of attention in its formative days.
It seems like everyone and their mother has their own LCD Soundsystem remix these days. Here is one that doesn't suck. Soulwax takes the Sound of Silver track "Get Innocuous" and rejuvinates the jam, bigger faster and stronger. This one is featured on the new "Someone Great" single that was just released this week.
Are you ready for this? An absolutely killer set from The Legendary Roots Crew at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland. This performance was recorded in 1999, right in the middle of the Things Fall Apart era and shortly before they released their only live album.
I first saw The Roots at the 2004 ACL Fest, and I quickly started picking up their albums and really getting into their stuff. A year or so later I saw them at Stubb's, and it was one of the best shows I've ever seen. Questlove even tossed me a signed drumstick. Good times, it was. I've been trying to track down a high-quality Roots bootleg for months, searching high and low in hopes of reliving those times I've seen them perform.
Now, I can finally sleep better at night. This is the one. The Roots give it their all for the better part of two hours, bring out a couple of special guests, give a couple of good solos, and the sound quality is 100% perfect.
I've taken everything from the set and made it one single file, so you can just push play and forget about it. If you want all of the indivudual files you can get 'em right here, along with a handful of other (lesser quality) live shows from The Roots.
"Homenaje," Spanish for homage, is the latest release from Austin Latin-funk outfit Brownout. The instrumental Grupo Fantasma side-project is more than a mere nod to late '70s Latin-funk acts like Joe Bataan and Santana, though. "Homenaje" is an amalgam of funky sounds ranging from the Fela Kuti style Afro-beat evident on "Con El Brownout" and "Chema's Contraband," to the smoldering neo-soul of "You Already Are," a track that would be at home on D'Angelo's "Voodoo."
The nearly all-instrumental album avoids stagnation by switching gears rapidly between tracks. "Homenaje" vacillates between the languid groove of songs such as "They Should Know," which sounds like a forgotten track from the Beastie Boys' "Check Your Head," and powerful crowd-movers like the CD's title track. Built upon a familiar piano montuno and the deft percussion of drummer Johnny Lopez and conga player Sweet Lou, "Homenaje" is a funky cumbia laced with powerful horns tailor-made to pack the dance floor.
Named one of Austin, Texas' 'Best Live Acts' by the Austin Chronicle, Brownout! performs the nastiest latin funk music out today. This band of "party rocking legends" was resurrected from the same tequila soaked border town explosion that originated the highly acclaimed latin powerhouse Grupo Fantasma. Fresh off the worldwide release of their first 7" single on the UK's prestigious Freestyle Records, the band has made waves internationally amongst DJ's, tastemakers and good music fans alike.
Brownout! is an 8 piece ensemble complete with 2 guitars, bass, no nonsense latin percussion, and the "Best Horn Section" 2 years in a row at the Austin Music Awards. Throwback but not copycat retro, their music is timeless and honest, keeping the spirit of 70s afro-latin and funk music alive while honoring their South Texas roots.
I kind of sort of started a new job this week, so I'll apologize in advance if things slow down any around here. I'll try to keep things flowing as normally as possible and keep paying it forward when I find something interesting.
Check out this video of DJ Shadow from the 2001 documentary Scratch, which examines the cultural and historical perspectives on the birth and evolution of hip-hop disc jockeys (DJs), scratching and turntablism and includes interviews with some of hip-hop's most famous and respected DJs. Check out that basement filled front-to-back with vinyl as far as you can see. That must be like the fountain of youth for an audiophile.
Below is a live set from DJ Shadow that was broadcast in 2002.
Soul Jazz Records has been releasing some very cool stuff lately. Or maybe they've been doing it for a while and I was just unaware. Yeah, that's probably it. The new Soul Jazz Singles release is a collection of songs taken from varying genres of electronic music through 2006-2007. It is a well-executed compilation of cool tracks that will turn you onto not only a handful lesser-known artists, but also compliment your library with some new forms of music.
"Some of the finest artists around have chosen to work with Soul Jazz Records over the last two years. As well as working with all the top Dubstep producers recently such as Digital Mystikz, Skream, Kode 9, etc, Soul Jazz have continued to release new music by the likes of Rekid, Ladybug (The Bug), DJ Rupture and many more whilst continuing to work with legendary dance music pioneers such as ESG.
Dancehall, Reggae, Italo-Disco, Baile Funk, Dubstep, German Rock, Post-Punk, Deep Techno and House all feature. This album brings together tracks that have only been available on 12” vinyl alongside a mix CD featuring loads of extra tracks, again most of which have not been on CD before."
"Soul Jazz Records started 15 years ago. We are a record label, record store, sound system, publisher and radio broadcaster. As well as our main label, Soul Jazz Records, we have affiliated labels such as Studio One Records, Universal Sound, Yoruba Records and more. Our record store is called Sounds Of The Universe located in Soho, London. We love all non-mainstream music: Reggae, Punk, Latin, Techno, Disco, African, House, Dubstep, Hip-Hop, Funk, Electro and more."
After completely selling out of copies of their limited edition EP, Holy Fuck are coming right back at you with an LP that encompasses the sum of their musical creation of late. Each of the tracks are either fresh out of the studio or are perfected versions of previously recorded material. The release date for the Holy Fuck LP is set for next week, 10-23-07. Below are a few words on the LP via DIY:
"Holy Fuck command the ears first and the brain second. Following the relative low-level acclaim of 2005's 100% improvised, 100% eponymous EP, their debut album 'LP' runs an uber-hardcore gauntlet. They're the evil twins of Chk ChkChk, with less sex and more death, interrupting the family reunion with krautrockers Neu! and Can with a succession of hammers, tribal rhythms and ultra-distorted Casio instruments.
Their 2004 effort showed a grounding in 1980s home synthesiser rhythm tracks and 'LP' begins to veer away into a more free-form, yet frenetically structured percussive juggernaut. 'Lovely Allen' sounds like a blissed up Sigur Ros falling down a big well and clearly loving it, but moments of friendliness are few and far between.
1am floor-filler it isn't, but 'LP' never bothers to wander down that avenue. What this Toronto-based supergroup offer is an electrically funky, beat-driven racket, as humourous in its devices as the toytown tendencies of Kid Carpet and as relentless as the pioneering No-Wave rumble of Liquid Liquid. Call it what you like – it's very, very good. Too good for asterisks."
"Discovered by Moshi Moshi Records whilst holidaying in the USA in 2003, BestFwends consists of Dustin Pilkington (23) and Anthony Davis (21). Two friends turned business partners, who in their own words, started making music "in a desperate attempt to make something out of themselves."
How best to describe their music? "Retarded anti-pop music made by two musical idiot savants from Texas with a cheap computer" is one cheerful description that's been offered up. But hold up, this is all sounding a little too self deprecating a little too early on for my liking..Two pubescent Beastie Boys let loose in Toys R Us with some RRRRRROCK guitars, some choice hip hop beats and other random noises thrown in for good measure doesn't quite come close enough, nor do it justice..but it'll do."
Spencer Krug first brought the Sunset Rubdown parade through Austin back in April of this year, and while they are on tour to promote their new album, Random Spirit Lover, they'll be making just their second visit to Austin since the band formed a short time ago. In 2006 they provided one of my favorite albums of the year, and just a few days ago they released their newest full length via the indie juggernaut Jagjaguwar. PopMatters liked it so much that they gave it a 9/10, saying:
"In Random Spirit Lover, it appears that he has finally reached a point in his career where full-on experimentation is not as risky in regard to his effecting his reputation. Without a leading, immediately engaging single, Krug’s goal appears to be fixated on crafting an album that is held together strongly by pure innovation, regardless of the epically sprawling nature of the included tracks. Perhaps that’s the reason why the shrewdly crafted Random Spirit Lover is the most satisfying batch of songs Krug has ever released."
"Now enter Sunset Rubdown's third full-length record, "Random Spirit Lover", featuring twelve songs that bleed in and out of each other, mixing portents with theatrics, confusions with conversions. The dark glamour of the music beneath the half-baked revelations in rhyme creates a tone of high drama, blown-out and overt, but the stage is wild and the roles aren't clear, so the sincerity of the work and the spontaneity of the recordings can't help but shine through the formality of structure."
Sunset Rubdown will be at Emo's on Tuesday, October 16th. That's next week. Admission will be $11 at the door, and if you RSVP for the show at Do512.com you can get in for just $6. Opening up the show will be fellow Canadians Johnny and the Moon and Magic Weapon. Earlier this year Sunset Rubdown performed live at Neumo's in Seattle, and you can listen to an aural reenactment of that performance below.
Transmography. I saw these guys at the Mohawk last night along with Haunting Oboe Music. Just two dudes in the band, but they make one hell of a racket. People were jumping up and down inside this tiny little space as the show seemed to get better and better with each song in their setlist. You don't see that very often at this venue on a Thursday night. I made sure to get my hands on their cd that came out in March called Polydactyly, which you can pick up/preview here:
"Polydactyly gracefully combines washy synth grooves, the distorted clang of iron bars, driving electronic disco beats, and warm guitar swells that weave throughout the music as the night tide coming into the shore. This eight song record is a constantly growing enigma from start to finish breaking the "rules" of modern day instrumental music.
Having dwindled from being a four-piece post-rock outfit down to a mere two members, Transmography continues their exploration of music as an art form with their latest release. This album brings along the band's love of digital synths, 70's rock, and cybernetic robots from the future. As most groups tend to suffer from losses in the member line-up, Transmography has take unfortunate circumstance and turned it into an opportunity for innovative creativity."
"These two dudes produce between them an instrumental music that is by turns experimental and melodic, familiar sounding yet impossible to immediately classify. Although the tunes rely heavily on drums, guitar, and keyboards, their best trick is one that I describe as “climbing the mountain”: building a musical structure which starts out in calm, almost meditative beginnings, and which then coalesces into a pounding mixture of power chords and percussion."
Get down on a few tracks from Polydactyly below, and hear more at myspace.
"At the age of 21, John McCauley, the man behind songwriting project/band Deer Tick, has recorded War Elephant, an album full of songs wiser and more nuanced than he should be able to produce according to natural law. The words are deliberate and heartfelt, following the lead of guys like Townes van Zandt, Neil Young and Richie Valens. The arrangements touch on everything from the summery rock of Tom Petty to Nirvana’s sludgier moments. And McCauley’s voice, arguably the best thing about Deer Tick, carries these great melodies with real strength and honesty."
I went to see this punk/rock band out of Houston a few months ago that I had heard about from a friend. After the show we conversed with one of the guys from this band, and at some point he mentioned this guy who goes by Deer Tick and writes all of these cool songs. He told me that I should definitely look into it and went on about how he wanted to get this guy in the studio and release an album.
Two months later I'm just now finding out how right he was. John McCauley can a write a damn good song, and his album War Elephant is an outstanding. There's not a single thing about it that I can point to and say "I wish they would've done this differently." The songwriting is great from start to finish, and as if that isn't enough, McCauley's voice is impeccable. I have a feeling that when the end of the year rolls around and I'm trying to pick my favorites of 2007, War Elephant will be in there somewhere.
This young man will be just one of the many attractions at Fun Fun Fun Fest in Austin on November 3rd and 4th. Over fifty acts will perform on three stages at Waterloo Park, including names like Cat Power, Diplo, Of Montreal, and of course a few handfuls of talented Austinites. Two-day festival passes are going for $54, and you can get yours right here.
If you're feeling broke and/or lucky, you can win one of three pairs of tickets from Do512 by clicking here and picking the Top 5 bands that you want to see at the festival. Capacity at Waterloo Park is around 15k, which will more than likely be filled top-to-bottom, so don't sleep on it.
"You, Me & Everyone" is the stunning new album from Pedro (James Rutledge), an ambitious attempt to widen the scope of cut and paste music. Receiving praise from pioneers such as Danger Mouse, Four Tet, and Thom Yorke, Pedro is seen as a producer's producer.
Since the release of his first EP in 1999, which marked the birth of Manchester's Melodic Records, Pedro has worked relentlessly to broaden the definition of instrumental hip-hop and cut n paste music. With layered references to the sound and compositional structure of modern orchestral work, hip-hop, free jazz and experimental rock music, Pedro has defined himself as a unique craftsman of collected sound.
Supermayer is Michael Mayer & Superpitcher -- easily Kompakt's most recognizable faces. Save The World places our two superheroes along the edges of the world of techno-bliss -- a trumpet, saxophone, acoustic guitar, melodica, flute, a vast array of percussive instruments and even a gong are just a handful of gizmos they used to defeat those electronic purists who would not dance. The dynamic duo also take a few death-defying risks by sonically experimenting with some indie-pop and laidback, lounge-y jams. Even in the familiar minimal banger territory of "Please Sunrise," a saxophone and spacey synth floating in and out of the mix add a layer of earthiness that leaves the track refreshingly warm.
"I trust Ryan Catbird with my ears. Ever since we first mentioned him and his indie (no, but seriously. Indie.) label a few months ago, I’ve been watching his music blog, Catbirdseat, like a stalker, and have panther-pounced a nice percentage of what he recommends. Therefore, while there may be debate as to whether I am worthy of telling you what to listen to, I feel totally comfortable telling you that you should listen to what he tells you to listen to… and the latest word from Catbird states that you need to stick your ears into the music of Clear Tigers. In fact, the man not only recommended we listen to them, he also “veered off towards hyperbole land” in saying that we will soon refer to them as our “new favorite band.”
"The Snake The Cross The Crown, a band that has proven not to take to Californian living, or the slick lifestyles of those trying to elbow their way to the front of the hipster lines, has already written and released two albums of perfection. The perfection lies not just in their individuality and vision of what a song must do in order to cut it, but in the band’s innate ability to know itself and breathe a life lacking all frivolities and needless banter, and instead make it the kind that is timelessly important and which should make them examples of exactly how to pen songs that spawn other imaginations and span more than mere minute hands. Cotton Teeth is a gripping disc that feels like a creaking porch, lit by the blueish glow of the electric bug zapper (the only bit of modernity allowed in this description) – a strong scent of freshly mown grass, the tear of blades lopping blades – and not another light to be seen in any direction, just stark silence that always makes you want to check behind you for something hunting."
Here is another obscure find from the psychedelic 60's, along the same lines as the Electric Prunes post I made not too long ago. This time around it's The Exotics, a little-known garage rock group who rose out of the Dallas music scene in the late 60's. I came across a handful of their tracks on a Texas Punk compilation that was ripped from vinyl, and then again on the Texas '60s garage anthology "Acid Visions." I've looked all over trying to find some information on the history of the band, but my search was almost entirely fruitless. If anyone out there knows anything more The Exotics, feel free to fill me in. Below are a couple of blurbs that I was able to find.
"Disc three (Acid Visions) is built principally around the sounds of the Exotics, whose range encompassed proto-heavy, metal-fuzz-laden guitars and folk-rock-type harmonies, as well as pop-psychedelia -- they sound absolutely elegant on the spaced-out, vaguely folkish "Morning Sun" and turn right around with a virtuoso electric guitar workout on the trippy, psychedelic lament "Hymn to Her." It's all fun and most interesting, although the annotation could use some work."
"The Exotics (Dallas) modified their 1967 song "Come With Me" (also covered by the Chesterfield Kings) to "Come With Me to Chevrolet" in order to plug Bill McKay Chevrolet (Dallas area?). This "commercial song" is also customized with aftermarket Slick-ish female vocals to give it that "Free Advice"/"Levi Jeans Commercial" feel. (The only active Bill McKay Chevy dealership, discovered through Google, is located in Fairfax, VA. So I guess, the song has lasted longer than the dealership and all those dashing '67 Camaros and Chevelles.) Both "Come With Me" and "Come With Me to Chevrolet" can be found on disc 3 of Collectables' "Acid Visions: Volume 2."
The Smashing Pumpkins, live at The Riviera Theater in Chicago on October 23, 1995. Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness was released the next day, debuting at #1 and eventually becoming one of the best-selling double albums ever. Most of the set comes from Mellon Collie and Siamese Dream, while they close the show with three Cheap Trick covers, "Baby Loves to Rock", "If You Want My Love", and "Auf Wiedersehen." The Smashing Pumpkins will be coming through Austin soon, you can click here for those details and see the rest of the tour dates at myspace.
I saw Bushwick Bill at Emo's last night. Bushwick Bill, the little big man from one of the gangsterish rap groups of all time. Add that to the list of things I never thought would happen. He did a couple of songs opening for Del the Funky Homosapien, and it was a good time. The night before it was a jam-filled show from !!! (their first gig in ATX), and then a fist-fight-filled show from Turbonegro. You never know what's going to happen. Here's a look at a few things that are coming this month:
I get a lot requests from people to Re-Up various things that I've posted here. If you're one of those people, leave a request in the comments and depending on what it is I will put it up on this page one more time. If you have a general request, like wanting to hear a live Roots show, or that hot new Britney Spears joint, or something, leave it here and I'll see what I can do.
On an unrelated note, here is some new Joe Beats to get those heads bobbing. Joe Beats is a hip-hop producer from Rhode Island, and "the foundation to most all of his music is a drum break carefully stacked on top of a loop. The groove is usually a filtered bass line, the main signature to Joe’s production. The end result is a gritty mix of melody and backbeat dipped in lo-fi." I introduced you to Joe Beats earlier, and he's got some new stuff which is quite groovy. The new album is called Diverse Recourse, which is described as the grittier sequel to 2003’s Reverse Discourse.
"Chris Simpson writes songs and sings them, and he calls himself Zookeeper when he does this. He used to be in some other bands a long time ago. One was called Mineral. The one after that was called the Gloria Record. When TGR stopped playing together, Chris had no home for his songs. But he kept writing them, of course.
When he had so many songs that he couldn't hold them in any longer, he called a bunch of his friends, and everyone got together in a studio in Austin (where we all live) and recorded them (you can hear how the first attempt at this turned out on the song "delivery room" from zookeeper's debut ep). Everybody had a real good time, and thought the songs were just top notch. So we traded instruments, invited more friends, learned more songs, recorded more songs, played a few shows, recorded again, played some more, drove to Los Angeles and back, drove to New Mexico and back, recorded, played, recorded, played."
The new album is titled Becoming All Things, and while on tour Simpson has surrounded himself with a cast of players from some of independent music's most exciting acts. From The Sad Accordions, Seth Woods and Ben Lance will join Zookeeper on bass and lead guitar. Playing drums will be occasional Zykos time-keeper Kevin Bybee, and later in the tour, former Gloria Record and now House and Parish drummer, Brian Malone. And Alex Dupree, of Alex Dupree and The Trapdoor Band, fills out the quintet on rhythm guitar. This is a promising restart for a gifted songwriter that hints at great things to come.
I haven't done one of these entries in quite some time, and Stolen Recordings in London just hooked me up with a handful of good tracks, so here we are again. Let's Wrestle, who I mentioned before, kick it off with the opening line "I Wish I Was In Hot Chip." They're followed by the first of six Stolen Recordings bands, a noisy trio called Screaming Tea Party. Filling out the other five are Tap Tap, The Ghosts, Jesus Licks, Pete and the Pirates, and Oxen of the Sun. Finishing it off, The Whip supply supply a little electro-pop and Hot Chip take their own spin on The Aliens' track "Robot Man", from the album I told you about. Enjoy.
