Autumn Leaves in Yosemite, Click for clearer picture
for a lazy saturday/sunday
for getting over a cold/virus in 24 hours
for sunny cold weather
for future xmas cards
Bon Iver – Beach Baby (link taken down at the request of artist’s manager)
Cat Power – Who Knows Where The Time Goes (Sandy Denny / Fairport Convention cover)
TV On The Radio – Family Tree (BBC Radio 1 Session) - from KeepHopeInside
17th @Treat Ave, 2008
The TV On The Radio show, Sunday night at the newly carpeted Warfield was a good time. Another high energy, dynamic show from one of the most important bands in music today. They only played for an hour, and with a catalog of 3 long players and few eps, they could have played a bit longer. The encore of ‘A Method’ with the Dirtbombs on stage to create a Stomp-like envrionment was a highlight as well as the driving hypnotic drumming that started and carried ‘DLZ’.
1. Young Liars
2. The Wrong Way
3. Golden Age
4. Wolf Like Me
5. Dirtywhirl
6. Stork and Owl
7. Shout Me Out
8. Red Dress
9. DLZ
10. Satellite
Encore:
11. Crying
12. A Method
13. Let the Devil In
14. Staring at the Sun
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Well, today is the day that New Order gets remastered and super-sized of their best material. Low-Life, Brotherhood, Technique and Power, Corruption & Lies are 4 classic albums that show a band coming into it’s own from the ashes of their previous band, Joy Division, by melding rock with synths to create a futuristic sound with Peter Hook’s melodic bass lines at the heart of each song.. This was the first band that I obsessed over. I had to get all of their releases and the first band that didn’t disappoint on most of their releases. They were the third band I ever saw in concert when they played with Echo & The Bunnymen on their 1987 tour and it didn’t sound that good, but by 1989 when they were touring with PIL and the Sugarcubes, they sounded much better (sampler technology improvements?). The shows were at Merriweather Post Pavilion, which is the name of the new Animal Collective album, and it’s also one of those truly non-distinct outdoor pavilions that’s usually located right in the heart of suburban blandness. Anyway, here are some of my personal favorites from the above mentioned albums. They are not the tunes that you normally dance to when it’s 80′s night. Some synth sounds may feel a bit dated and Bernard Sumner’s lyrics sometimes feel like they came from the back of a cereal box, but they are nonethesless one of the most influential bands touching everyone from LCD Soundsystem, Arcade Fire to Richie Hawtin. They were making the indie kids, the precursor to hipsters, dance when they were also just figuring out what else to do with their hips.
FerrisWheel, Treasure Island, 2008
TV On The Radio, Young Liars, Treasure Island, 2008
The Treasure Island Music Festival. Amon Tobin played some great breaks, downtempo and drum and bass…. Mike Relm kept the party going even though it was all prerecorded. The Foals sounded like the British version of Battles, which isn’t a bad thing. Goldfrapp was a bit too dreamy. Justice did another bad job of copying Daft Punk.
TV On The Radio. Six times now, and they still do not dissappoint. After opening with a soulful rendition of Young Liars, the band went through about an hour of old and new material including a hyper version of Satellite. The highlight was the warmly syncopated version of Love Dog which brought out the richness of Tunde’s voice in perfect range, ooh’s and all. These guys are making important music. I hate to say this, but they are the American version of Radiohead. They challenge the listener in every way, and although I think David Sitek’s production can get a bit overwhleming, they twist their influences in such a way to make it their own. They stand alone in their sound, and the message………well, I guess that’s for you to figure out. Get their new album Dear Science, when it comes out tomorrow. Your grandchildren and future baby-mama’s will thank you later.
The “D” Hat, Carmel Valley, 2008
Sometimes it’s good to go outside of your comfort zone…give up control, trust your instincts and to just go with whatever discomforting situation. What is it ? The feeling that you’ll be taken to another level of understanding of yourself. Challenge your knowledge. Grow. Don’t sit still. Lately, I’ve been challenging myself physically and it’s definitely helped to clear up my mind. At one time, I challenged everything because I thought there was something better, but now, I am doing it to gain perspective. There’s a graffiti sign that my partner in crime pointed out to me the other day, which I have to take a picture of, that said “Trust the Struggle”. Exactly. I will cuddle your struggle.
Now, here are some songs about struggle, and the need to cut your toenails ever other week……..
TV On The Radio – DLZ – from the new album coming out in a few weeks, Dear Science,. another collection of great songs from a band that can’t be pigeonholed into a specific genre. not as bombastic as their last offering, but still offering up layers and layers of insight for the whole family to enjoy.
Wighnomy Brothers & Robag Wruhme – Pele Bloss – robag wruhme who really produces all of the songs knows space. from his productions to the epic dj sets, he understands the groove and how to make the four four beat funky. he strips things down to the essentials and before you know it, you’ve entered this massive world, only to have it destroyed and built back up once again. damn, i miss going to warehouse parties.
Portishead – Only You (Live) – step along with the bassline into a blissful state of love. i always thought the line went “it’s only you who can tear me apart”, but i guess it’s “tell me apart”. maybe it’s both. a torch singer with the 70′s bassline and rhodes.
The The – Helpline Operator (Live) – where is matt johnson ? lending songs to car commercials. this is a classic track from a live set in 1993 when someone i know NOW was only 11 yrs old and i was …..almost done with college, working in a record store, eating fried chicken in a cab while i was getting head…oh yeah, that last part was actually miles davis, or charlie parker….whatever…… can you say “fluffy bunny”…with 5 marshmellows in your mouth? try it.