officially been chopped and screwed screwed

hahaha, I heard this on the radio while driving around in my Mom's Ford Focus while visiting my sister in Belleville, Illinois this week (birthplace of Jeff Tweedy, FYI).

This is everything terrible about top 40 Rap/R&B (the ubiquitous drum sounds, the obligatory auto-tuned out vocals) but the chorus is so bugged out I thought it was noteworthy. It's almost like Squarepusher it is so bugged out. Also it's catchy as hell... I've been singing it (faux auto tune effect and all) for three days, much to the wife's chagrin. At least stick around to the 1:00 minute mark for that chorus.

Also, it fun to change the lyrics for your everyday life like "You know my name is D-C Looch, Looch", or "I'm about to drink a fucking brew, brew, dude, dude", or "I have to make a call to Senior Goob, Goob" or "I need to go put on my shoes, shoes, what, what"...

hahaha, that shit cracks me up, I hope at least one of you feels me on this...

Freddie Hubbard-Open Sesame

Here's one that I'm listening to. I knew But Beautiful from it, but not much else from him besides the Red Clay LP.

DC hit me with it a while back. I listened to it a few times back then and then removed it. I've just dug it out and added it back in when I read about his passing.

Now here's something I'd like hear feedback on. Does it make me lame to be interested in the music of someone who'd just kicked the bucket? 

I feel a bit dirty, but this trumpet is nice.

Fuck Buttons

I don't know what it is, but I'm checking out all these bands that DC is going to freak out over. All of this is coming from the the many end of the year lists put out by critics, which has led me on a massive downloading spree.

I'm checking out the album "Street Horrrsing" by the Fuck Buttons, a duo out of England. This stuff sounds a little like Black Dice, simmering noise slashed through with laser-beam guitar or keyboards, occasional screaming, but often melodic, and always huge. Actually, it's kind of perfect music for sitting in a nearly empty office in midtown Manhattan, the machines humming quietly in the background, darkness falling.

Dragging a Dead Deer Up A Hill

That's the name of the new album by Grouper-Liz Harris's band from Portland-and the soon to be favorite album of DC's, taking the place of Valet's "Naked Acid". This sounds like a cross between Bon Iver and Brightblack Morning Light with PJ Harvey singing through an avalanche of reverb--etherial and strangely beautiful.

Christmas Time in The Roadhouse

I've been checking this out the last few years...

On the last Wednesday before Christmas, Greg Vandy at kexp.org has a Christmas-themed show on his 6-9pm (Pacific) time slot (a.k.a. "The Roadhouse"). I haven't heard confirmation that he's doing it this year, but tonight would be the night.

Blues, jazz, soul, funk, etc. Good shit. Always a nice change of pace from the standard holiday fare.

No worries if you can't catch it when it airs - it's up on their site for a couple weeks for your listening convenience.

His show is also a great one to check out any other week.

Happy holidays ya'll.

El Guincho

Another album I just got hip to is Alegranza, by the Spanish musician Pablo Diaz-Reixa. Anyone who likes Panda Bear and the album Person Pitch will dig this, it's a bit dancier and more Spanish, but that same kind of psychedelic, Beach Boys vibe. I'd be surprised if Noah Lennox isn't a fan of this, rocking out in Portugal or whever that dude does his thing.

The Future Sound of Cambridge 3

I've been playing these tracks non stop since I downloaded them from beatport. The disc has 11 tracks by 3 producers on U.K drum and bass label Hospital Records. Commix, Nu: Tone and Logistics, all three collaborate on 3 tracks. Check out Trademark and Intervention, two of the best tracks on the release. A couple of tracks are in the sub genre of dnb called liquid. What is it with all the genres and sub genres any way! If the bass is dope then I dig it! Check out KJ Sawka, he's a jungle drummer from Seattle. He has some bad ass drum skills on display on Youtube.

There's Nothing About Mary

One more post from me, this one is kind of a rant, but I figure if someone can post video of their own band here than I can rant about something music related.

So I checked out Tomas Fujiwara and the Hook Up last night in Brooklyn. Cool show, mainly because all the songs were great, really strong compositions, lyrical and edgy but not too atonal. 

Tomas had the ubiquitous Mary Halvorson on guitar in his group. Not sure how many of you have heard of her, but she is kind blowing up here in NY, playing in a bunch of different groups and putting out a jazz record this year that not one but two NY Times critics put on their Best of 2008 list. 

I've seen Mary play probably 6 or 7 times and each time I've tried to keep an open mind. A lot of musicians I really respect like her, and I'm really not the type to get all opinionated and hate on a local musician trying to make a career of it. 

But I honestly can't believe that everyone is so crazy over her. She plays guitar like someone doing a math equation--totally passionless. She manages to make a beautiful Guild hollow-body played through a tube amp sound brittle and cold. She plays like she is just running through scales, all brain and no emotion. And last night, more than any other, I thought she was just plain sloppy at times. I think people want to like her because she is a mousy, artsy-frail chick playing a guitar that's as big as her. But I give up, I'll go check out People because I like Kevin Shea's drumming so much, and I'd check out Tomas Fujiwara again because he writes great songs, but for now my mind's made up about Mary. 

(sorry about the post title, but I couldn't resist...)

Department of Eagles

Department of Eagles is one of the guys from Grizzly Bear and his old roommate from NYU.  I've been checking out their album "In Ear Park", which I think I like more than any of the Grizzly Bear albums. If you had told me this was the latest Grizzly Bear record I wouldn't have blinked, but if you listen closely you can hear a difference. One thing notable is the nylon-string guitar that sounds like most of the songs were written on, adds a different element. But it has the same kind of huge vocal harmonies as Grizzly Bear, and I guess the same rhythm section.

Seattle Dragon: Evil on the Rise

Yo! Is it self indulgent to post a video of your own band? Heck yeah, but I'm doin it anyway. Fortson where you at? This was recorded in North Hollywood in 2006 on a little handycam. Ator on bass, the Shadow on guitar, Gibby the First on vocal, Afrikaner on drums. I'm down to see a 2uo video on here. I got some really good dnb I'll post later.The Shza.

What are you listening to?

7 Days and not one of your motherf*ckers posted about what you are listening to?! Everyday I check in and read that same Rapeman post and think "Am I a pretentious douche bag?" But, I mean, Wilco?!?!

Anywho, I'll hold this thing down myself, screw it. I actually went outside for lunch today for the first time in 2 weeks and went and bought records.

I wanted to get this new Numero group joint for a while. Numero Group is a record label that puts out high quality shit. Their "Eccentric Soul" series is bomb. They pick a label or scene and collect everything that ever came out (sometimes only a hand full of 45's) dig up the history and package the whole thing in deluxe beautiful packaging, extensive liner notes, and amazing music. At some point I started getting them all on vinyl and now I'm hooked. Each one is a fat 2 LP gatefold, they look great on a shelf with each other.



The new one, Twinight Label retrospective, is a 4 LP blow out. Beautiful packaging, check this shit out... like almost an inch thick. This thing is like 5 pounds:



Then there are four covers inside with extensive liner notes... EXTENSIVE!




Good stuff. Then, I found this "Dome" LP. I've been on the look out for this for a while. It's pretty rare. Dome is the side project of 2 guys in the band "Wire". It sounds like Wire, but way way more bugged out. It's pretty cool, I'll definitely rip this so if you want it holla at me.



Lastly, even though I'm sitting on 4.3 DAYS of top shelf rare reggae, plus 4 inches of reggae on the record shelf, I spent $10 dollars of my hard earned money on this record for no good reason:



I need an intervention.

How about you, friends? What are you listening to right now?

dc

Normal People

Have you ever tried talking to normal people about music? It makes me feel like I'm an alien.

Here's a conversation I had with a co-worker yesterday:

Them: "What are you listening to?"
Me: "This band called 'Rapeman' from Chicago."
Them: (blank stare)
Me: "It's a band with members of Big Black and the Jesus Lizard."
Them: (blank stare)
Me: “Big Black was Steve Albini's first band"
Them: (blank stare)
Me: "Steve Albini? Super producer? He produced a ton of seminal albums, like the Pixies 'Surfer Rosa'. "
Them: (faint twinkle of recognition)
Me: "I think he produced a Nirvana album, the one after 'Nevermind'."
Them: (ding!). "Oh! Nirvana! "

Granted, Rapeman is a pretty esoteric CD but here’s another example. I was going to see Nels Cline doing a duo free jazz gig, and someone asked me where I was going. I told them, adding as a reference "Nels Cline is the guitarist for Wilco now"

(blank stare)

I mean, you don't know who Wilco is? Aren't Wilco top forty?!

There is no common ground, no frame of reference. And I work with a bunch of 24 year olds. They were 10 years old when Kurt Cobain killed himself. Nirvana is like classic rock to them. Try telling them that the bassist for the Melvins Is in High on Fire.

Melvins: A Senile Animal

Have you ever thought that the Melvins needed more drums? Me neither, but like a bacon double cheese burger, sometimes you gotta say sure what the hell! For this release in 2006 and the new one in 2008 they merged with Big Business a metal duo from L.A. New drummer Coady Willis can rock. The last 3 tracks have that familiar slow, drone, sludge rock that they are famous for. There are more drum fills than you can imagine, but the two drummer things works better than you'd think. 6 of the 10 tracks are under three minutes so there's no time to get bored. The last 90 seconds of the video is a drum freakout.

The Muslims/The Soft Pack

I got hip to The Muslims a few months ago. Some website shouted them out, either Vice Magazine or www.streetboners.com, some site that does not typically shout out random bands.

These guys were local band out of San Diego, no label. They have since blown up a bit. I listened to their myspace page tracks over and over for a day and forgot them, but the name stuck in my mind. The Muslims? So bad, but fuck it, no worse that "The Police", right?

Then, a few days ago I saw on othermusic.com website there is a rare Muslims 12" and I dropped everything to find it, but have come to realize it is long gone. They have a 10 song LP dropping in February, though.

So back to the myspace page. I highly recommend you go check it out... the 5 jams on there are all gold. These guys are like Strokes-y rock. That's it, pretty much. Just really good, really catchy rock jams, lots of "hey! ho!" choruses. Great bass tone. The singer has a slacker too-cool-to-try-too-hard voice but it is endearing and totally works. I copied the tracks off myspace and listened to it 5 times back to back to back to back to back in my Jeep.

The twist is I guess they just changed their name from "The Muslims" to "The Soft Pack". Meh, on the one hand, to name your band The Muslims and then get cold feet and change it is kind of pussy. But, now that they are starting to blow up and get some recognition, it would just be a matter of time until some cleric put a fatwah on them so you can't really hate on them for changing up the name.

Go check it out now, these songs will be stuck in your head all week. Fortson, this is your all American rock band.


http://www.myspace.com/thesoftpack

dc

Planet Gear

Squarepusher - Planet Gear from Warp Records on Vimeo.

Complete Stax/Volt Singles

Somebody - maybe my man Pete Angeli - hooked me with "The Complete Stax / Volt Singles: 1959-1968" 5 disc set in a trade one time. This thing is a score. Thanksgiving, my mom and sister and mother-in-law are over. What do you put on? "The Complete Stax / Volt Singles" on shuffle. Tons of jams, some you know, lots you don't... some straight up funk jams, some mellow soul ballads. 5.8 hours of music. It's like the best oldies station. Perfect background music. If we trade some music remind me and i'll throw it on there, good to have in your back pocket.

Stay up.

dc

Berlin Anyone?

Speaking of Lou, there's been some press about a recent live performance of this which I don't really give a crap about, but it has made me want to revisit the album. I 'm honestly not much of a Lou man except for the Velvets and this, and I think the germ of most of these songs are Velvets bits. For all its hype about being the most depressing album of all time it's no biggie by todays standards, and it's no more of a downer than say Lenny's "Songs of Love and Hate" or Big Star's 3rd. It does share similar moments of beauty and despair with those two albums, and it has one of those big 70's analog productions (Bob Ezrin) that they just don't do anymore. Too lazy too post tracks but if you've never heard it I'd say you should...

The Closet Mixes

I got the Velvet Underground "The Closet Mixes" in a trade with Gabino ( I think it was part of the "Peel Slowly and See" box set).

I think The Closet Mixes were Lou Reed's mixes of the "Velvet Underground" album on MGM, called Closet Mixes because they sound tight and cramped in.

Anywho, all I'm saying is I can listen to "Some Kind of Love (Closet Mix)" on infinite repeat for the rest of life. Luckily it was on YouTube, because as far as I can tell the BooMP3 era is over... that site is totally fucked.



Happy Thankgiving, my friends.

J-pop drum and bass

This is a London Elektricity remix of Japanese dance pop band Nirgilis. The singing is primarily in Japanese, with as few English words thrown in. I've heard some of their other tunes and she does the same thing. Kimi wa daremo aise ya shinai, whatever that means! I'm really digging the more pop sounding dnb tracks these days. Rock on Broheims!

Kid Scooba

The other thing I'm checking out this weekend is the latest joint from Kid Scooba. No one really knows who Kid Scooba is, he's more reclusive and weird than that German dude who makes music under the name Burial. I heard Kid Scooba is also German, but that he spent a lot of time in Asia. Hard to describe what the music sounds like, but if Sun Ra was raped by that weird Aphex Twin Man/bikini-babe character, and the bastard  child was brought up by Brian Eno, it would probably sound like Kid Scooba. 

Brightblack Morning Light

Brightblack Morning Light sound like that Morcheeba album "Who Can you Trust" if you took that down a notch even further down the mellow meter. This is music to take a heavy downer to, have a glass of wine, cue up the lava lamp and just chill hardcore. I was just reading a profile on them in Fader, they have the whole White Stripes thing going on in that they claim to be platonic friends/musical partners, but it is hard to believe. These two apparently live like nomads, camping out and crashing in various places when they are not touring. There was a quote from the guy about how they spend all the money they make on tour to pay for good musicians and they live like homeless people. They are apparently renting a house in rural New Mexico and they hang out there making crazy spacey music and smoke huge amounts of weed. I gotta check out their new album, "Motion to Rejoin", but I was listening to this last night and felt like posting about it.

Miriam Makeba

Hello everybody! Don invited me to this fantastic blog, and when I said "I don't know nearly as much new music as you and your funky friends do", Don says "dude you can just post some kick ass bluegrass." Well I haven't been listening to much bluegrass lately, but I have been listening a lot to Miriam Makeba.

Miriam Makeba is from South Africa (which is a country, not a province of Africa, Ms. Sarah Palin!), and has that really great uplifting africa-meets-jazz-funk sound. She has something in common with Hugh Masekela, both in her music and in that they were married for a time. Sometimes there's some Nina Simone and sometimes there's that clicking you hear in some native african languages. "I Shall Sing" from this album has got to be one of the most joyful recordings ever made.

Miriam just died - November 9th, 2008. She had a heart attack shortly after performing one of her hits - "Pata Pata" - at a benefit concert in Italy.

Deerhunter

Best new shit I've heard in a few weeks is the new Deerhunter joint, 2 CD set "Microcastle" and "Weird Era Cont.".

I'm not going to go into a whole thing here about it, I don't have too much in depth to say, but rather I'll just say it is really good listening with really good songs. (Pitchfork will give you the long-winded spiel)

The songs are so good that they made me get over my adversion to their freakishly anorexic lead singer (shudder):




YIKES!

dc

Just A Souvenir

Anybody check out the new Squarepusher? I just got it, only listened through once, still having mixed feelings about it.

I've been listening to soundsystem recordings as of late. One of my favorite music sites to go to is Who Cork the Dance? They're now featuring a bunch of "line in" recordings (aka soundboard recordings) rather than "in the dance" recordings (aka audience recordings). Love that site a lot...especially now that I'm more interested in early 80s dancehall reggae.






I've also been listening to some jazzy stuff as well. I went to a used CD store the other day and got a fair amount of good stuff. I picked up a copy of the remastered Repeater + 3 Songs. Now, I sold my original copy of this a long time ago so hearing this again really brought me back. Way back. Joe #1!

Okay, so Fugazi isn't the jazzy stuff I mentioned but that trip to the CD score also dug up Jimmy Smith Live! Root Down:




And for the record the other CDs were Happy Monday's "Yes, Please," Lagwagon's "Let's Talk about Feelings" and a CD/DVD by Funki Porcini "Fast Asleep." Not bad for a little over $20.

I've also had Miles Smiles in my CD player a lot lately:



And last but not least, in the CD changer after Miles Smiles is "It's All Around You" by Tortoise.

Telefon Tel Aviv

My buddy Talley came through from Prague this weekend, dropped about 2.5 gigs of music on me. Have been enjoying Apparat, an electronic musician in Berlin, but I checked out Telefon Tel Aviv today and it is the biggest find so far. Reminds me of Four Tet, but a bit more down-tempo, sometimes a really heavy ambient vibe. Perfect for late night, after work and a few drinks........

Fond Of Tigers

Looking for that post-rock fix and can't find anything to fit the bill? Every instrumental post-rock recording sounding like the same old thing over and over? Look no further.
Fond Of Tigers are just the ticket. They are coming from more of a "free jazz" place than a "rock" place, but don't let the four-letter word "jazz" make you think it's gonna be sans balls, because these motherfuckers rock like demons. The songs are very vamp-y, with lots of intricate ostinatos happening (4 bars of 6, then a bar of 7 thrown in) and other brainy, artsy bullshit that would be annoying if it didn't make such complete musical sense. They have a massive sound, employing 2 drum sets, bass, guitars, violin, trumpets, electronics, the whole kitchen sink. All the tracks flow perfectly together to make for one very rewarding continuous listen.

I know of two releases: Release the Saviours and A Thing To Live With.
I prefer the latter; it just seems to all come together in a very special way, like chocolate and peanut butter.

And just look at that cover:

Terje Pt2

By popular demand, MP3 of "Keep It Like That - Tight"

Boomp3.com

dc

Terje Rypdal

This is one of my all time favorite records, Terje Rypdal was a guitar player from Iceland (?) who was down with Jan Garbarek. He did a bunch of records for ECM, and some with Flying Dutchman. I believe Terje was originally in a 60's pop group, his country's Beatles, almost, but then went on to make esoteric jazz records.

Some of the later records like that on ECM are gaaaaaay, but this one is fucking awesome. 1971. The first song "Keep It Like That = Tight", starts with a funky sparse electric bass line intro that slowly builds, until the drums (courtesy of Jon Christensen, another guy who played with Garbarek alot) comes in with a fat ass crazy heavy drum break for like 4 soild measures. But more than a rare break LP, this thing goes on to be top notch. Saxophone solo kicks it off, spacey rhodes, then Terje comes in with the shredding yet outside the box guitar solo a la Ribot at his rippingnest. Those drums!

2nd track is a sparse, spacey jam with bowed bass that is amazing.

3rd track has his wife on the free jazz vocals. Hahaha, did you notice that all those guys had their wives on their records? Larry Coryell, Sonny Sharrock, Doug Carn... all those free jazz cats. But this jam is just more of the awesome same. Then a cool interlude, then a rocking closing tune like The Blues Project on acid. Consistent all the way through. I digitized this shit so a lot of you may have it. "Bleak House" is his other must have.

TERJE RYPDAL S/T. BEST ALBUM EVER.

dc-looch

In Search of Manny

I guess this was recently re-released or something. Anyway I found it on eMusic and it still sounds great. 15 years old, I can still dig it and still love that album cover.

I never owned this album, it was a cd that my roommate in college (ahem, Bolsinga) owned, and I could never play it enough.

I never got into their second album "Natural Ingredients" and I lost track of them after that.

Keep on rockin' it.

Boomp3.com

TJ RIVER, SEND ME YOUR ADDRESS

CHECK YOUR GMAIL

Happy Halloween Pt2

This is what I'm bumping right now.



(Just kidding, I'm listening to the awesome reggae blow out I got from JKP).

dc

The Haunted Mansion

First off – did you guys catch the Mad Monster Party post on Iron Leg? So dope. The track he posted is killer. It definitely turned my crap day around. Check it out.

Here's another blast from the past. The build is slow and the "song" is a bit long (20 minutes), but, about halfway through, it slips into an ole-time vaudevillian freakshow party. It's definitely worth the descent. Muaahahahaha...

Happy Halloween.

Boomp3.com

African Scream Contest

I'm just beginning to learn about the musical phenomenon of 1970s Benin & Togo, where wide-ranging influences descended on the region from all over the burgeoning musical map.

That's where this comp is rooted and it's precisely where it jumps off – taking an afrobeat foundation and blending funk, soul, latin, rock and psych into a collection that's nicely varied, but deftly consistent from beginning to end. Somehow, it just makes perfect sense. From the first spin, it stood out as something really special.

Lokonon André & Les Volcans - Mi Kple Dogbekpo
Boomp3.com

Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou - Gbeti Madro
Boomp3.com

I've yet to dig any deeper into the upstart German label that put it out (Analog Africa), but I'm dying to. Stay tuned...

Gang Gang Dance

It's not often I flag a release date on my calendar and run to iTunes/record store the day something is released, but i did that with the new Gang Gang Dance joint, "Saint Dymphna".

Gang Gang is a Brooklyn freak out-type of band (once sharing jam space/apartment with Black Dice and Animal Collective). Some of their early stuff sounds like a bunch of stoned hipsters banging on pipes and playing Casios in somebody's basement (probably true). But they really broke through on "God's Money" a few years ago, top 10 of all time type CD in my opinion.

The new album build off of God's Money - weird ethnic percussion, 80's synths, yelping female vocals, but all served up in a surprisingly accessible package - as well as the more techno-y shit that they have put out since then. Crazy lazer beam sounds and shit fill up the space between the instruments and vocals.

This is the best use of the 80's throw back trend right now in that it uses pieces of that era to create something new and exciting, instead of being a parody of music from 2 decades ago (like that new M83 joint, which sucks, and sounds like it could be The Breakfast Club soundtrack).

Having said that, "House Jam" on the new GGD is beyond a homage to "Into The Groove" era Madonna, it could be a b-side from the "Like a Virgin" tour. I wanted to delete it, but it would break up the way the whole cd is cross-faded, with similar textures and sounds throughout, presenting one cohesive whole (I love that). Also, hate to say this is the jam that gets stuck in my head and I'm singing while i walk around the city.

Also, on one track a Wiley-type rapper ("grime"? is that what that was called? "Garage"?) raps on one track and it is actually pretty dope.

Anywho, long story short, this is dope. NY Times did an article on them this week (!) and Pitchfork gave it a 8.5 on teh richter scale. I used up the last of my iTunes gift certificates to get it... It's unprotected, so if you are up for a trade check me out and I'll throw this on a DVD with a ton of other shit.

Attention fans of Warp, Squarepusher and that ilk...

Insect Digestion Melancholy by Hrvatski.
Still the #1 Top Played track in my iTunes.
Available only on 7" vinyl...so enjoy.

Wildflowers

Bands are getting better and better at doing the retro-funk thing in a convincing way, and these guys are among the best. Malcolm Catto from the Heliocentrics crew sits in on drums for a few tracks, ensuring the CD's funkiness to the upmost. Compare to Heliocentrics, Sharon Jones and the Dapp Kings, The El Michaels Affair, Breakestra, The New Mastersounds, all those funky bands that owe their heart and soul to late '60s and '70s funk.

Mr. Rhythm

This record isn't that good, but check out the cover. This dude has so much rhythm, it builds up inside him like molten lava and then fucking explodes out of his head in a rhythmic explosion. That's why they call Willie Rosario "Mr. Rhythm".

dc

A Journey into Fresh Diggin'

If, like me, you think the first Quasimoto CD is absolute genious, 10 albums on a desert island material, then you need to check out the mix by DJ Trbl, "A Journey into Fresh Diggin'". It is all the Quasimoto jams from both CD's, mixed in with the tracks that he sampled, plus all kinds of rare B-Sides and 7"s and shit, all mixed together extreemly well. Plus, you can download it for free at http://www.rappcats.com/.

Word to your moms yo I strcictly smoke the bomb.

THe Diizzzzz

RECORD LABELS

I'm pretty loyal to certain labels. There are some labels that all of their new releases are an automatic buy even if I've never heard of the artist before. In my youth it was labels like:






When I was heavy into house and electronic stuff it was labels like:



etc, etc, etc.

These days I don't have many. One recent label that seems to have fallen on hard times lately is:


A great root reggae re-issue label.

So...what about you? Any labels you go out of your way to collect? Blue Note? Trojan? Underground Construction?