What's Louder Than Ten? Eleven.

I've been listening to the new tune "11th Dimension" from the Strokes' Julian Casablancas pretty much nonstop for the last week.

Don't believe it's that good? You might be skeptical for about 1.1235463 seconds, when the opening synth drums make you feel like you're listening to your little brother (or kid, significant other, what have you) play along to one of those pre-recorded 'jams' that accompany many musical instruments these days. Then the amazing keyboard riffs come in and you're hooked, if you're a big keyboard/80s/synth enthusiast such as myself. :)

This song is essentially electronic, with a big 80s vibe that'll make you want to bust a move over and over again. Because so many artists are making the shift to sounding like they just popped out of a Dolorean from 1985, I am totally loving it! And I add this song to that list, and hopefully Casablancas as well once the album 'Phrazes for the Young' drops. Don't get me wrong, I love the Strokes, but this is so refreshing! Enough about my tastes, on to the rest of the song.

Throughout the entire song, you're bombarded with persistent, flamboyant keyboarding. There's a guitar riff that shows up every minute or so, and some light picking that accompanies the chorus, but the keyboard is the star here. And I think it works well, since Casablancas' voice is very smooth and sort of monotone (for him, anyway...) here. There's nothing really special in the lyrics, but let's face it, you're too busy jamming out to the keyboards to listen. That is the only reason the song gets a 9/10 in my book, which is still pretty damn good.

All in all, I think it's a smart move on Casablancas' part. It's a new enough sound that it will attract die-hard fans looking for something fresh (as evidenced by my friend Jesus' obsession with the song), as well as draw in newcomers who don't have a historical affinity for traditional Strokes-esque music. Here's a link to the mp3. Enjoy, but try not to break anything, material or anatomical, when you spontaneously burst into sweet moves of dance.

Double Post Part Deux

On my way into dreamland, I stumbled upon this picture, and subsequently fell over in laughter. This will never get old.





As my friends (I wish) in Blitzentrapper say, it's sleepy time in the western world.

My (Rather Ambitious) ACL Schedule

Since it would take a novel of a blog to explain why the following artists are on my schedule, I'm just going to say that I either already love them, or am hoping to after the festival. Reviews will be up of those select few I find worthy of my keystrokes, so stay tuned for that.

Friday: School of Seven Bells, Blitzentrapper, The Walkmen, Phoenix, Thievery Corporation, Andrew Bird, (maybe) the Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Saturday: Deer Tick (yay!!!!), The Raveonettes (also a yay, especially if I can't find a ticket to their Friday ACL after-show), Mute Math, Grizzly Bear (I hear their light shows are amazing), John Vanderslice, Devotchka (for that song that's on Little Miss Sunshine), Ghostland Observatory (their light shows ARE amazing)

Sunday: The Dodos (a great find!), Here We Go Magic (on the fence about this one), White Lies, Arctic Monkeys (just to say that I've seen the Arctic Monkeys), The Dead Weather (just to say that I've seen every single one of Jack White's damn bands. I bet he announces a new project at ACL. Fuck.), Dan Auerbach, (maybe, probably not though) Pearl Jam


Needless to say, my musical plate is full. It's a good thing portion control is a widely praised yet seldom practiced concept, otherwise I'd have to cut back.

I'm a Hi-Fi Goon...

Short post tonight, because I am le tired. So, I've recently been playing the album Creaturesque by Throw Me the Statue. It's more poppy than a lot of the stuff I listen to, but I'm pretty forgiving and patient in letting music grow on me. That being said, I was kinda disappointed. It's one of those albums that you can play in the car on a long drive, simply for the sake of having background noise. Nothing really stands out here, nothing to make you slap your cheeks and go Macauly Caulkin on your stereo.

Now, I really like the song "Hi-Fi Goon," but that could just be because I always pay attention when I hear it. Why do I do that, you ask? Because the title is strange, which made me want to know the lyrics, which I haven't found ANYWHERE. Grrrr, so frustrating, I'm the worst at figuring out song lyrics! Case in point, you give me a Pearl Jam song to decipher, I'll give you a bunch of growls and guttural noises. Oh wait, that's everyone (disclaimer: I like Pearl Jam, most of the time). Poor example. I'm too tired to think of another.


*Disclaimer: Bitchy Moment Alert*

Can someone please tell the Friendly Fires that gym whistles are NOT to be used as a musical instrument? Please? It was cool in Space Jam (cut me some slack, I was like eleven when that movie came out), but we are not trying to bring back Jock Jams. Ever. I can tolerate your incessant bongo-ing, but I'd rather you use the sound of my head making contact with a wall over and over again than that whistle. I can send the sample now so you can fix "Jump in the Pool." I'll post it on your myspace.

*Attention: The Bitchy Moment has subsided*

Other than that complaint, the Friendly Fires self-titled album is a nice effort, chock full of electronica goodness, tinged with a bit of 80s and those lovely British voices. I love it when a foreign band actually sounds foreign! Granted, Phoenix is one of my favorite bands, but did YOU know they were French right off the bat? Didn't think so...


Hmmm, maybe not such a short post tonight after all. What can I say, I've got the perseverance and determination to blog all night long, if that's what it takes to spread the word on good tunage. Cue the Chariots of Fire music, please.

Supergroups, eh?

I've noticed a lot of collaborating lately in the world of indie music, and I lovelovelove it! Here are a few notables in my mind:

Discovery
Who: Wes Miles of Ra Ra Riot and Rotsam Batmanglij of Vampire Weekend

Album: LP, 2009

Sounds Like: Electronic funk R&B, from space

Verdict: When 'Osaka Loop Line' first came on the radio, I thought it would be some random techno song from someone like The Avalanches, but I was pleasantly surprised to hear Miles' voice sounding out from the speakers. His airy vocals provide the perfect balance to the uber-poppy, in-your-face beats that pretty much make up the rest of the album too. Another thing I like about this band is how often they'll switch up the rhythm, tone, pitch, whatever, all in the same song. The lyrics can be a bit childish and innocent (come on, give me angst, Wes Miles, I want to hear your angsty side!!!), but all in all a good side project for both. Listen for vocals from the singers of Vampire Weekend and the Dirty Projectors as an extra treat!

The Almighty DefendersWho: The Black Lips and King Khan (minus his Shrines)

Album: The Almighty Defenders, 2009

Sounds Like: So far, a doo wop-hippie-gospel fusion

Verdict: Holy crap, the Black Lips and King Khan made a gospel album?!?!?! Well, that's what the papers are saying, but granted this is a little premature. These boys aren't that well known yet (and the album hasn't come out :P ), so that elusive torrent remains just out of reach. However, I have heard 'Cone of Light,' and I like its style, a kind of throwback to the 50s. Very tame for King Khan, and very unstoner-ish (I never claimed to be a wordsmith) for the Black Lips. So all in all, I like the happy medium brought about by these two groups. Back to the gospel bit, I believe the album was heavily influenced by the events that led to its creation. This year during the Black Lip's tour of India, two of the band members publicly kissed, and another dropped his pants; i.e. BIG no-no in India. So as rumors were spread that they were going to be arrested and tried and sent to jail for a long, long time, they cancelled the tour and fled to Germany, where trusty King Khan lives. An 8-day binge drinking session spawned The Almighty Defenders, and damn do I like it. All's well that ends well!

Volcano Choir
Who: Bon Iver and Collections of Colonies of Bees

Album: Unmap, 2009

Sounds Like: Bon Iver on happy pills

Verdict: Again, I just don't have the skill anymore at finding these elusive torrents. I've heard a few songs off the album ("Island, IS" comes to mind), and all I can say is what a difference a band makes! When Justin Vernon is Bon Iver, he's pensive, poignant, his beautiful voice and music are subdued and quiet, almost melancholy. Teaming up with Colonies, a predominantly Mogwai-esque instrumental band, you get a whole new canvas to play with. A tambourine?! Bon Iver doesn't have a tambourine, at least not a happy one. But Colonies does, and added in with all the other instruments it makes Vernon's voice seem more spirited, like the livelier music just barely coaxes him into a state of excitement. And even though there are many different types of instruments in use here, they don't overbear the listener. Each piece interacts collectively to form a single, fluid sound that's really pleasing to the ear. An interesting side note is that Volcano Choir was started before Bon Iver became the greatest thing since sliced bread (why is sliced bread so great again?).

Monsters of Folk
Who: Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes, Jim James of My Morning Jacket, and plain old M. Ward

Album: Monsters of Folk (Come ON supergroups! All these self-titled albums, you can be more creative!), 2009

Sounds Like: A mishmash of ten kinds of folk (no, I will not name them all)

Verdict: The first album after 5 years of existence finally arrives! Coming into this I was a little subjective, being a big Conor Oberst fan and a big not-so-fan of M. Ward (I'm sorry, he totally blew at 2009's SXSW). But the best thing about bringing these guys together is that they each bring a different element, a different style and taste to the table, so you get an album is as once their own individually as well as the offspring of their musical lovemaking (like my literary devices???). You have a lot of traditional-ish folk in here, like "Say Please," that could be played anywhere from the Coachella Music Festival to the rundown dive bar in my podunk hometown. You can hate folk, but you have to admit its versatility. Something that did surprise me was the element of folk-funk I picked up on, particularly on "Dear God..." I swear, that would have been my summer song of the 70s, if I had been alive then. All-in-all a solid effort, though not the epic powerhouse I was expecting from such renowned folk artists. It's that M. Ward that's dragging them down...


Other Songs of Note
Taken By Tree's "My Boys": "My Girls" was my favorite song from the new Animal Collective album, partly due to its catchy electronica hook. Here, Victoria Bergsman (she of PB&J "Young Folks" fame) kidnaps the song, locks it a room, and doesn't give it its drug fix for a month. OH yeah, and she switches it around just so people don't think she's a lesbo. With a mellowed out, almost tropical sound, I think it works for her. Her voice would have been completely drowned out if she kept the Animal Collective vibe going there.

The Antler's "Kettering": In the Antler's sweeping epic about a man who must watch his lover dies of cancer, "Kettering" documents their meeting and falling in love. Or at least I think it does. The lyric are minimal, but effective and haunting. The music too is a catharsis of sort, and when Peter Silberman goes on about "they told me that there was no saving you," you find yourself sad that he must lose his love.



That's all for now, I have a 32-mile bike race bright and early tomorrow morning! Goodnight, world! Mwah!

Now Things Are Looking Up

Even though I've gone through some bad crap recently, I just have to say that I have the best friends in the world! I love all my Louisiana, Beaumont, Houston, and Austin friends very much! You guys make my world go 'round! And without you, I'd probably have gone insane by now :P

Post #2

I know, I know, excessive blogging today. But I have just have to throw it out there that I hope bad things really do happen in threes! Wish me luck in life, I could really use some right now!

Kettering

Everyone should listen to this song. It's beautiful and haunting and I never want it out of my head.


I wish that I had known in
That first minute we met
The unpayable debt
That I owed you

'Cause you'd been abused
By the bone that refused
You and you hired me
To make up for that

And walking in that room
When you had tubes in your arms
Those singing morphine alarms
Out of tune

They had you sleeping and eating and
And I didn't believe them
When they called you a hurricane thunder cloud

When I was checking vitals
I suggested a smile
You didn't talk for a while
You were freezing

You said you hated my tone
It made you feel so alone
So you told me I ought to be leaving

But something kept me standing
By that hospital bed
I should have quit but instead
I took care of you

You made me sleep and uneven
And I didn't believe them
When they told me that there
Was no saving you


by The Antlers

The Weekend in Review

And so ends the long weekend, and what a weekend it was! Here's a play-by-play (sort of) chronicling the activities of yours truly.

Friday-Astros vs. Phillies. I got really great seats and $50 in Astros bucks from work. A stuffed monkey, coozie, and one foam finger later, I was sitting by the right foul pole. My only regret is not bringing a glove, since three balls had already dropped in our section by the second inning! The best part of the game was introducing my friend to the wonderful world of baseball! It's my favorite mainstream sport (volleyball is always my number 1 ^_^), full of excitement and suspense, not to mention men in tight pants. Game night followed, where I ate my second and third dinners...I can't refuse the culinary hospitality of my host now can I? Haha I ate waaaay too much and almost fell asleep on the drive home. My new bed was a very welcome sight that night!

Saturday- Beachy McBeacherson. We planned on spending a relaxing day in Galveston, getting our skinned tanned and toes wet. For the first hour or so, it was just that. I was so amazed by how clear the water was! Though of you who've gone to the beach with me know that I DON'T get in the water precisely because I can't see where I'm stepping. I was out there that day in chest deep water, and I could still see everything perfectly! I did almost get bitch-slapped by a sea bass, but that wasn't a big deal. This, however, WAS a big deal: during the two-minute interchange wherein my friend got in the water and I got out, my beach bag mysteriously sprouted legs and walked away. Credit card, keys, ID, camera, iPhone, clothes, etc, all gone! Surprisingly I kept my cool and was able to get mostly everything taken care of within an hour. I really think it was a test, and it showed me how mellow I've become lately, and I love that, even though it was brought about by the worst circumstances. There was a silver lining- I finally got the white iPhone I wanted. :) I didn't let it get me down though, and we went out to a salsa social that night, where I got free lessons, about a dozen amazing dance partners, and a peek at some of the areas best salsa performers!

Sunday- The most jam-packed day of the weekend started off with Inglorious Bastards. I knew there was a reason Tarantino is one of my faves! He didn't disappoint; that movie was awesome on so many levels! The Bear Jew even gave me a few ideas as to what I'd like to do to the person who stole my bag, hehehe . After the movie, I literaaly sped straight over to Melissa's pool party, which subsequently turned into an indoor pool party because of the surpise showers. Oh well, I got to see her awesome new apartment, which offers wicked deals for Shell employees. No deposit and three months' free rent, makes me wish I hadn't just renewed my lease! Next stop was Live It Big, a charity event held by four bars on Washington- Pearl Bar (for my only follower, that's the Texas Ex bar in Houston :) ), The Lot, The Drinkery, and Reign Lounge. It benefits a nonprofit that works on cancer research. The doorman at The Lot kept accusing me of being TABC since I didn't have a current drivers license, but after a lot of convincing, he let me in. I even got $20 bucks out of the deal, because some guy felt bad that I had been robbed- 'here kid, get drunk on me.' Haha, that's my kind of charity! I discovered how great I was at Flip Cup during the ten or so games we all played, and then casually smashed my toe on an uneven sidewalk on my way out. Grace, that's my middle name. Finally, off to Mike's, where I was fed a delicious steak the rooftop deck of his sweet new house. Such a chill time, I didn't want to leave, but I was muy cansada. Playing with the dogs I was co-sitting capped off a great day, but more was to come on Monday...

Monday- Got the locks changed on my apartment, woohoo! And they didn't even charge me to replace the keys and gate clicker, and neither did my gym for the new key card I needed. :) I also went a little crazy at Best Buy, but I got the camera that I really wanted (another part of the Galveston silver lining)! Astros vs. Phillies part 2 ensued, and we had even better seats than before! The pictures from the new camera were great, and my 'Stros won again! Haha, take that Philly! Now it's time to work more on my art, so I can have it all ready for my art party!


Sweet dreams, all!

9/2/09

I want to move to Austin soooooooo bad! Why can't they build an oil refinery there? :P