Happy Friday

Ooo-we. Just picked up 6 albums - a whopping 82 songs - for my weekend listening pleasure.

Local Natives - Gorilla Manor
Pantha du Prince - Black Noise
Gil Scott-Heron - I'm New Here
Stricken City - Songs About People I Know

...and to scratch today's hip-hop itch...

Strong Arm Steady - In Search of Stoney Jackson
Elzhi - The Preface

Even though I'm a student, and the week/weekend divide is an illusion, there's still something special about Friday. And Friday mostly certainly calls for good music.

DB and I used to take our paychecks directly to the record store on Friday night every other week. Y'know, back when those existed, when you could get CDs for under $18, and when it was actually our goal to burn through every dollar we made (oh, yeah, and when I actually made money). Then we'd get a burrito, go home to Babs, and spend the evening throwing ourselves a little party - loud music, beers, video games, and general merriment. Some of my favorite times ever.

Today, I did it all online, but I'm still excited. Maybe it's time to bring back the tradition. Amoeba Friday's, anyone?

Anyway, I'll letcha know what's worth your while.

Die Antwoord

Out of S. Africa. There are no words...

QOTD: Destroyer

"And i'm reminded
of the time that i was blinded
by the sun
It was a welcome change
from the sight of you hanging
like a willow
off the arm of yet another
visionary prophetess
east...
Van...
punk

I didn't stand a chance
I couldn't stand at all
You looked ok with the others
You looked great on your own
It was 2002 and you couldn't be bothered"

'Painter in Your Pocket'

Some days are Destroyer days.

Dan Bejar & Co. have a monopoly on a certain mood that I wake up in from time to time. A little bit melancholy, a little vulnerable, a little defiant, a little contemplative, maybe a little blurry.

Bejar is an artiste. His music is painting, his lyrics poetry. All vivid colors and surreal landscapes, occupied by characters that all seem to be tragic, or at least tortured. And you can tell from his one-of-a-kind voice and spoken word panache that he really lives all this beauty and pain.

This song is the one that first hooked me. For those of you that aren't hip to Destroyer yet, I would start right here. 'Destroyer's Rubies' is where it's AT.

Bejar also moonlights in The New Pornographers and Swan Lake, but for me, those projects just weigh him down.

SOTD: AU

On last year's 'Versions' EP, these sleeper Oregonians reimagined six of their previously recorded tracks, carving out the souls of the songs and lighting a fire under 'em, a la Grizzly Bear's 'Friend.' But the clear standout is the opener, 'Ida Walked Away' - the one new addition to the cause. A breakthrough of sorts!? We'll see...

Frequent comparisons to Animal Collective and Grizzly Bear are simplistic, but I think it's fair to say they are somewhere between the two. Way more manic than GB, but more orchestral and gracefully melodic than AC.

Broken Social Scene news & new song!!!

New Epic Broken Social Scene Song!

Listen to: The Soft Pack

I'm not quite sure what makes some garage rock exciting and the rest of it... not. What separates The Black Lips and The Kills from the pack? Hard to say - I don't think it's as simple as good songwriting or perceived "authenticity." You just kinda know it when you hear it.

Though not exactly garage rock - they're part pop, part punk, part middle-of-the-plate indie - the Soft Pack also has that irresistible je ne sais quoi despite doing absolutely nothing new. Good for today's ride home from work...

Listen to: The Avalanches

Because I said so.

In all honesty, these Aussies were not really on my radar until they landed in Pitchfork's top 10 of the decade. But apparently, this album came out in 2000 and was never followed up. And as my roommate JL explained, this kind of sampling had gone outta style with DJs at the time, contributing to its low profile. Well, ten years later, it's... awesome.

SOTD: Jolie Holland

Snatched up another winner from Jolie Holland, 'The Living & The Dead.' This song's got a really similar vibe to 'Sister Rosetta' from that Robert Plant & Alison Krauss affair - smoky, mysterious, longing. Born somewhere on the border between Texas and Mexico, but influenced by the sounds of traveler's from every direction.

DP v. GB

So wrong and yet so right.

Thx to MA for the link!

Daytrippin'

I love traveling. I mean the actual, physical, transportation side of it. I feel like I’m moving forward, and at the same time, it’s an excuse to sit still (something I’m otherwise miserable at) and bang out a bunch of different stuffs. Best of all is the sheer volume of tuneage I can pack into my ears. Albums! Full-length, start-to-finish, epic long-players – my favorite way to listen to music. Mix in the romance of traveling, and the emotions of seeing and leaving people, and they tend to take on an added layer of significance. Between the ride to the airport, the lines, the gate wait, the flight, the baggage claim, and the ride home, there’s just no better time to indulge.

Yesterday’s line-up, start to finish, from DC to VA to NY to SF:

Cotton Jones Basket Ride – Paranoid Cocoon (perfect for that cold, pre-coffee dawn)
Wilco – A Ghost is Born (which I listen to almost every time I travel; more on this album later)
Wild Beasts – Two Dancers (more on this after Thursday’s show!!!)
Willie Nelson & Wynston Marsalis – Two Men with the Blues
President – Take Music
Panda Bear – Person Pitch
Lindstrom & Christabelle – Real Life is No Cool
Liars – Liars (so much better than I remembered!)
Mount Eerie, Julie Doiron, Fred Squire – Lost Wisdom
Scotland Yardstick (LA’s latest mix-up)
The Roots – Phrenology
…and for the final stretch into the city…
Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane

I could have gone all the way to China at that rate.

Listen to: Studio

As much as I sweat ‘West Coast,’ I was a little surprised how excited my roommates were when I slipped it on the speakers the other day. But the feelin was definitely right – a long afternoon, sitting in the sun at the kitchen table, all drinking coffee and trying to do work, in need of some positive energy.

The fact that they’re fiercely proud West Coasters didn’t hurt either.

SOTD: Beach House

Next to ‘Norway,’ probably my favorite jam on this killer new Beach House album. So much more full and ambitious than their prior efforts, but without losing that haunted house feeling. Lovin it right now.

SOTD: Animal Collective



"I start in a hose and I'll end in a yard
When I feel like I'm stealing I can't keep myself from hearing God
Only the taste of your cooking can make me bow on the ground
It was the clouds that carved the mountains, it was the mountains that made the kids scream"

'Peacebone'

I have no idea what this song means, but I love all the bright, inspired imagery. This album is so underrated, especially in the wake of Merriweather Post Pavillion. The latter is more focused and cohesive, but Strawberry Jam is bursting at the seams with ideas. 'Peacebone' is not the best song on the album, but a perfect example of the creative outburst.

"If you like it, then you shoulda put a ring on it"

This line was the source of some serious debate last night, even bleeding into this afternoon. The meaning hotly contested, sides firmly entrenched. Women's empowerment or reinforcement of the male-dominated power structure? It's a surprisingly fascinating question.

In the end, I think I agree with JP that even if the song is a call for women to stand up for themselves and be independent, the ultimate goal still seems to be the traditional 1950s marital archetype. Guys: put a ring on it, bring home the bacon. And when that's the case, we know what the woman's role is (we all watch Mad Men, right?). The only modern element is the "or else" at the end. I don't think that's the progressive kind of feminism.

The fact that there are dozens of 'Single Ladies' baby videos, and the song is every teenage girl's ringtone is especially problematic. And I believe that this stuff matters.

Perhaps unfortunately, there was unanimous agreement that (1) the song is irresistable, (2) the video is genius, and (3) homegirl can shake it.

Hoist the Colors

Caught up with an old friend recently, a great guy I used to hang out with at hardcore shows. He's in a new band, Hoist the Colors, doing the Flogging Molly/Pogues Irish folk-punk thing.

Those of you in the South Bay, looks like they play a lot locally. You SFers, they're coming to town 3/13. Show 'em a little love. As if you need an excuse to get out for a Guinness...

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