"I'm a freak, she's a freak, everybody's a freak...!"
This is your banger to blast the rest of Summer '09.
Play it loud and WIND IT UP!!
The sex Jam is from Mark Pritchard aka Harmonic 313/Reload etc and Om'Mas Keith of Sa-Ra Creative Partners. 'Wind It Up' is chopped and screwed booty music. What could be better??
Buy it on vinyl from Turntable Lab! Great album cover!
Animal Collective approached Los Angeles based "Ambassador of Boogie Funk" Dam-Funk to do a remix of "Summertime Clothes" and after becoming more familiar with the much-hyped noise group, he agreed. He even hand delivered the final mix to the band at their super-crazy-hyped show at the Troubadour in Los Angeles back in February.
In 1970, three brothers from Detroit started their first band and began playing Funk/R&B at shows around town. In 1973, the brothers went to see a performance of Iggy and the Stooges. From that day forward, the band moved into the direction of Rock n' Roll and named themselves Death.
Clive Davis noticed them, gave them a record deal. They started recording. Davis then insisted they change their name. The brothers (led by Bobby Hackey)refused and the deal was canceled. Death released 500 copies of a 45 on their own that was given away at shows for free. That was that.
Sometime in the 2000's Bobby Hackney's sons heard Death songs being played at parties in California. Bobby shared the 34 year old master tapes with his sons. Drag City came into the picture and finally gave the album a release on February 17th, 2009.
Simply Red meets Bon Iver. I really like this. It's beautiful and moody and sad and sweet.
These guys are from Berkeley, CA by way of Bloomington, IN. They released their 3rd full-length with JAGJAGUWAR back in February, called "The Blue Depths".
There are free tracks available via their MYSPACE and via RCRDLBL.
The stand out track for me is Harmless Lover's Discourse. Kinda heartbreaking.
LISTEN TO "LADIES" HERE Track is featured on Lee Fields album "My World", dropping June 2 on Truth and Soul records.
Judging from this track and the couple songs on his MySpace, album should be pretty great.
From the Truth and Soul site: Lee Fields is a bona-fide, 100%, unadulterated, pure, gut-bucket soul singer. While the crate-digging funk and soul community bestowed "legendary" status upon him due to his undeniably solid series of rare 7" singles (and one LP) recorded and released on his own independent labels in the 70s, he's never been one to sit in a dusty corner. New York label/production team Truth & Soul, are ready to bring him to light with a brand new album of beat-heavy, deep soul ballads that will show soul-revivalists the world over what real soul is.
Little Dragon. Haven't been so excited about a band in a long time. They released their self-titled record way back in Sept. 2007 (remains import only) but it's been gaining slowly gaining awareness in the US ever since. Above is a video for "Constant Surprises" off that album which is loaded with gems. GEMS.
The Swedish group is led by Yukimi Nagano, who has done work with the band Koop in the past. She's got an enchanting voice and charisma to boot.
They toured the states late last year but will be back soon opening for TV on the Radio (no comment on that band) on the East Coast and in the South and headlining some West Coast dates.
May 11- Mr.Smalls Theatre support for TVOR Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania May 12- Headliners Music Hall support for TVOR Louisville, Kentucky May 13- Bottle Tree Cafe support for TVOR South Birmingham, Alabama May 15- House of Blues New Orleans support for TVOR New Orleans May 16- Stubbs Bar-B-Q support for TVOR Austin, Texas May 17- House of Blues support for TVOR Dallas, Texas May 18- Diamond Ballroom support for TVOR Oklahoma City, Oklahoma May 20- INDEPENDENT San Francisco May 22- Detroit Bar, Costa Mesa May 25- GLASS HOUSE, Pomona May 28- CASBAH, San Diego
Conspicuously, there is no LA date. But hopefully they'll decide to add one last minute. The shows are going to rule. Highly recommended. Ok?
Word is the new record is done, we just have to wait for news on a release date.
Just came across a really exciting new band called The Invisible. They are from London. They are a three piece. They have a REALLY great single out in the UK right now called "London Girl". It's kinda reminiscent of Cut Copy, of Hercules, of Grovesnor, but actually very tough to find an accurate comparison. It's groovy, funky and just really good.
It will be great for watching the sunset over summer BBQs for sure.
The track will be included in the band's self-titled debut album, due out on Accidental in the UK in September. No news at the moment regarding a US release.
A bit of a blast from the past, Chicago House king Felix Da Housecat is back at it. A big fan of his 2001 album "Kittenz and Thee Glitz", I had kind of forgotten about him. UNTIL, I heard his new single "Kickdrum". It's a serious attack of repetitive and intoxicating bass with some sexed up female vocals by Nese Djouma on top. It's the kind of track I want to hear at maximum volume, surrounded my walls of speakers and preferably under some strobe lights. Hot shit.
Check out the video Felix made for YouTube above. The single is available for purchase exclusively at Beatport as of April 14.
Full album due out later this summer. He's doing Coachella and other scattered dates in the meantime. Myspace.
Ahhhh... Camera Obscura. They've been around for a while, since 2001 to be exact. Their fourth album "My Maudlin Career" (due out next Tuesday, 4/21 on 4AD) is by far the one that is sticking the most with me. It's got their trademark sound but with a more uplifting vibe. A couple of the tracks feature layered strings and such which gives them a kind of '60's feel.
Tracyanne Campbel (guitar and vocals) writes most, if not all of the songs. They are mostly about love, love lost and all the things that go along with that. Her voice sounds a bit like an old fashioned Tracey Thorn.
The band tours most of the US beginning at the end of May.
For dates and stuff like that visit their MySpace page. To order the album and stuff like that visit Insound (vinyl and CD).
Here is a link to two tracks "French Navy" & "My Maudlin Career".
Listening to some moody music today to match the weather. I guess the seasons are in mid-change so one minute is cool and grey and the next it's warm and blue skies. Layers.
What can be said about Spiritualized that hasn't already been said? Amazing, lush, powerful. This track is from Spiritualized's 2nd album "Pure Phase" that came out in 1995. There is a lot of excitement right now about the band (J. Spacemen and co.) performing the seminal "Ladies in Gentlemen We are Floating in Space" in its entirety later this year in London. Tickets sold out in minutes. They added another show. Pretty sure that's sold out too. A little birdie told me that the US may get similar treatment! :)
The Field is so dear to my heart. This track is off the only full length to date "From Here We Go To Sublime". The Field consists of one man, Axel Willne. Axel's got a magic touch with beats and loops and I can't wait for the next record, supposedly due out in May.
I have a self-admitted bad habit of playing a song on repeat if I really, really love it. Well, everyone around me should be prepared to hear El Perro Del Mar's "Change of Heart" many times. It's the 2nd track on the new album "Love is Not Pop" from Gothenburg, Sweden's Sarah Assbring (El Perro Del Mar).
The record as a whole is sweet, moody, melancholy and about love, duh.
From the EPDM's MySpace site: El Perro Del Mar just finished the work on the mini-album 'Love Is Not Pop' to be released on the 1st of April. The album was produced by El Perro Del Mar and Rasmus Hägg from the Gothenburgian duo Studio.
There is an obvious Studio sound on a few of the tracks, especially "Change of Heart". The drums are amazing. It's hands down the jam of the album.
Looks like this is just an import for now, so you'll have to hold your horses to buy the proper album.
So there is this thing called Donk. It's really, really bad. It's really, really addictive.
What's Donk you ask?
Donk: A pipe/plank-sound, that is used in Bouncy/scouse house/NRG music. Hearing this sound in a piece of music, one can easily recognise the genre of music it is.
The sound is most commonly placed midway between beats, in the same place as hi-hats, but can be put in other places for different effects and such. The music it is used in is usually played between 150 and 160 Beats Per Minute.
When dancing, a donk commonly makes the dancer bounce on the donk beat.
It all started (as far as I know) with the insta-classic "Put a Donk on It" by Blackout Crew. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckMvj1piK58 It's fucking infectious despite how awful it is. AND. It's popular as all hell.
A friend of mine told me about these guys a while back. I finally listened and understand why he was so excited about them.
From their Myspace page: Staff Benda Bilili are like nothing you have ever seen or heard before. A group of paraplegic street musicians who live in and around the grounds of the zoo in Kinshasa, Congo, they make music of astonishing power and beauty. The band's mesmerising rumba-rooted grooves, overlaid with vibrant vocals, remind you at times of Cuban nonchalance, at other times of the Godfather of Soul himself. You can hear echoes of old-school rhythm and blues, then reggae, then no-holds barred funk. Four senior singer/guitarists sitting on spectacularly customized tricycles, occasionally dancing on the floor of the stage, arms raised in joyful supplication, are the core of the band, backed by a younger, all-acoustic, rhythm section pounding out tight beats. Over the top of this are weird, infectious guitar-like solos performed by young Roger Landu, (an ex-street kid the band took under their wing), who plays a one-string electric lute he designed and built himself out of a tin can.
The lyrics of the Staff Benda Bilili are wise, ironical advice to the people who live in the streets. In Lingala, "Benda Billi" means "look beyond appearances".
Their story and sound are good reminders that great music doesn't always happen in expensive studios or with the finest instruments and that sometimes the harder the struggle, the richer the music.
As always, it's better for us all to support the artist with some paid downloads, and actual album purchase, etc. But here are two tracks for you in the meantime.
It's pretty rare to hear a new record and want to listen to the whole thing on repeat. That's how I feel about Phoenix's record (due out May 25th). It's a straight pop record and I have to admit a bit one dimensional. But it still rules. It's one of those records you can listen to if you're super happy, sad, if you're driving, walking and it fits the mood perfectly.
It's their 4th record and I think it's gonna be a banger. They're already set to perform on SNL with Seth Rogan on April 4th and I hear a Coppola is directing their video in Germany as we speak.
Oh, the singer is Sofia Coppola's baby daddy. Cute.
I promised myself 2009 would be full of "new". I've never hosted a blog so that's new, right? Well, new to me.
This will simply be a landing spot for things I'm into, be it new songs, albums, artists, restaurants, movies, kitties, puppies, etc.
I know the last thing the world needs is another blog. I know. But. I am a Prisoner of Leisure and can't be bothered to care.
kthnx
PS- Heading Photo credit: Chris Waterton. Taken last weekend 3/20/09 in Palm Springs. It was my FIRST vacation weekend there. And it ruled. photo also by Chris Waterton
