!Forward, Russia!, Snowden @ Black Cat, 12.16.06

!Forward, Russia!




Snowden









This past Saturday might have marked the last show of the Metro D calendar year. Snowden brought the melody and the beauty (Corinne Lee) while !Forward Russia! turned the energy up to 11 and never looked back.

Snowden had me at "Anti-Anti" (the first track I caught) and it wasn't because of the wire-tight melodies or Corinne Lee's show-stealing rock posture stage right. They just bring it. Great songs steeped in energy and conviction came to life throughout their set. Several songs took on new meaning for me and let's just say that JK wasn't lying when he said I would be digging the vibe. While I wasn't completely floored by the album on first listen months ago, they have definitely grown on me. The live performance brought some new perspective on previously avoided tracks and on repeat listens I am drawn into their fold, impressed and glad I made it out on Saturday. We were close to throwing in the towel after a stop at a Christmas party, but the effort proved fruitful. It didn't hurt that I slammed about five solo cups of holiday punch at aforementioned party. Delicious drink. Godforsaken hangover.

The danger with !Forward, Russia! lies in the comparisons they elicit. People start throwing bands like At the Drive-In and Bloc Party out there and it doesn't fit. Similar approach? Perhaps. Peers? Doubtful. While Tom Woodhead threatens to strangle himself with the mic cord throughout the set, I am never truly afraid of the possibility. Anyone who has seen Cedric Bixler-Zavala (of ATDI and The Mars Volta) live knows that anything is possible. If he ever wrapped a mic cord around his neck I would be afraid. Very, very afraid. His presence and stage activity is equal parts chaotic, disturbing and frightening. This isn't to say that !Forward Russia! doesn't bring the dance punk and bring it well. They do. The energy and furor they bring to each track is riveting and fun in its own right. But let's keep it in persective. None of the tracks echo Bloc Party's "Banquet" or even Franz Ferdinand's finest. But they do make you move and keep you wanting more. The matching t-shirts with the two lane highway of exclamation points is an added bonus, of course, as are the songs with actual names instead of numbers. At the end of the night, Snowden had stolen the show, but I left impressed and looking forward to a new album, which !Forward, Russia! gave us a taste of during their 50 minute set.

  

MP3: !Forward, Russia! - "Nine" (Moons of Neptune Remix)
MP3: Snowden - "Like Bullets"
MP3: Snowden - "Counterfeit Rules"

Video: U2 - "Window in the Skies"

The household is divided like this: Pearl Jam is my favorite band that I will love to the death and U2 is the First Lady's favorite band that she will love to the death. I make cracks about Bono wearing sunglasses all the time. First Lady defends his eye condition. First Lady cracks on me being all of 26 years old and being a member of Ten Club and I crack on Bono running around on a heart-shaped stage. So when we left the Verizon Center this year, following her indoctrination into the Pearl Jam live experience, and walked to a cab, I had to ask her. She saw U2 several months prior, at the same venue (in the owner's box no less) and loved it. But I had to know. In her opinion, who is better live? Maybe it was the rush of the show. Maybe it was the afterglow of being in the presence of greatness and seeing your loved one explode with other members of the Ten Club when the opening bars of "Release" kicked off the experience. Maybe that is what made it great for her. I can buy that. But there's no changing her answer: "Pearl Jam. By far." In Eddie we trust.

Last night we were in a similar afterglow. We had just purchased a new car, something we had been holding out on for a long time. I was happy because it was a Passat (a 2002 Passat saved my life and my friend's life about 4 years ago, and I still own it), and well, because the First Lady was happy. We settled down for some TV. Now, I am not a big TV guy, I have my shows and I stick to them, so it is a rare moment where I am flipping around. But we settle on some "Rob & Big" on MTV and well, I have to admit, that shit is pretty funny ("do work"). I notice during the ads that a new U2 video is premiering. The idea of a video premiere is slightly humorous to me, mainly because, as you can see, this shit was on YouTube three days ago. Premiere my ass. But it was the first time I was seeing it. I get pretty psyched during the previews because it looks like an extended version of that scene in Vanilla Sky where Cruise's life flashes before his eyes (starts around 2:50) only it is all music clips, no stills.

I start talking it up a little bit and the First Lady is laughing. "Why are you so excited about U2?" She's ribbing me, talking a little shit and I like that.

The video is what videos should aspire to be: an experience. They aren't changing the world with it, but it is something new. It is enjoyable with repeat views (I have watched it five times today). It goes to show you why U2 is still around today. They simply continue to adapt and morph and make great music that people can relate to. There is a touch of Johnny Cash's "Hurt" but it isn't a personal retrospective. It is an homage to musicians and legends, young and old. It closes with Frank Sinatra closing a song and walking towards the camera. I get goosebumps at that point, because I know the impact Sinatra has left on Edge and Bono.

In a recent taping of David Stewart's "Off the Record" on HBO, Bono related a great story about Sinatra. They were hanging out in New York during a recording session where Sinatra joined Bono on vocals. In between sessions, they were at a restaurant late one night drinking (Bono made a point to say that Sinatra drank them under the table) and during a lull in a conversation Sinatra looked down at his napkin and under his breath said "my eyes used to be that blue." Bono's description of that moment is beautiful, and to a certain extent the interview that night gave me a glipse into the heart of a guy that is often the butt of my jokes, and allowed me to understand him a little bit more and appreciate his work and vision. U2, whether you like them or not, are a special band and Bono is a special individual. This video - this homage to music in all its forms - is a remarkable trip. The way the lyrics blend with other people singing their songs, the way Bono and Edge and Adam Clayton find themselves mingling in the crowd is a beautiful reminder that they aren't just rock stars. They are fans, too. Give it a look...

Kaiser Chiefs Coming Back to the States

Next in line for "[insert British buzz band] set to release second album," the Kaiser Chiefs will be returning to North America for a quick tour (more dates coming?) to once again prove their worthiness. Response to this band is always going to vary greatly but I, for one, thoroughly enjoyed their live performance last year.

Judging by the capacity of these venues (in parentheses), the band are confident that I'm not the only one awaiting their return.

April 13 - New York: Roseland Ballroom (3500)
April 18 - Toronto: Kool Haus (2200)
April 20 - Chicago: Vic Theatre (1300)
April 27 - San Francisco: Warfield Theatre (1500)

Last Days at Tower Records

For those of you with a Tower Records in a nearby vacinity, it may be worth stopping by for one last look. The one in my neighborhood is closing in less than a week and they're practically giving cds away at this point. The pickings may be slim but those with patience and some extra time on their hands will find some decent selections left. I picked up Rogue Wave's Descended Like Vultures, The Futureheads' News and Tributes ($2), and Sound Team's Work EP for a grand total of 8 bucks. As InMyTree would say, Get Some.

MP3: Rogue Wave - "Publish My Love"
MP3: The Futureheads - "Back to the Sea"
MP3: Sound Team - "It's Obvious What's Happening Here"

Grizzly Bear Tour: Black Cat, March 4

[Photo Credit]
Grizzly Bear is one of those bands that gets a ton of hype on blogs. The live show, apparently, continues to outdo itself. According to some, the album is 2006 Top Twenty material [nialler9 - #18, Lawrence.com - Top Ten, Stylus - A-, Pitchfork - 8.7, Tapes 'N Tapes - #7]. I just caught up with these guys this year, so I am somewhat of a novice with their haunting, soft sound.

I also can't speak with much authority on the live show, although we were close. We were supposed to see them open up for TV On The Radio, something band-related happened to them, they weren't able to make it and Celebration took care of the opening slot.

I feel like I am cramming right now, because there are still about 5 or 6 albums that I need to listen to before this year is out. Yellow House, the second full-length album from Grizzly Bear is one of them. It has received too much critical praise for me to pass it up. That said, another opportunity to catch these guys live is coming up. Check out the dates below...

  

MP3: Grizzly Bear - "On a Neck, on a Spit"
MP3: Grizzly Bear - "Knife"
MP3: Grizzly Bear - "Deep Sea Diver"

2/1 - Philadelphia PA -- Johnny Brenda's*
2/2 - Boston, MA -- Museum Of Fine Arts*
2/3 - Northampton, MA -- Iron Horse*
2/4 - Montreal, QUE -- Main Hall*
2/5 - Ottawa, ON -- Barrymore's*
2/6 - Toronto, ON -- Lee's Palace*
2/8 - Ann Arbor, MI -- Blind Pig*
2/9 - Chicago, IL -- Subterranean*
2/10 - Minneapolis, MN -- 7th St Entry*
2/11 - Iowa City -- The Picador*
2/13 - Denver, CO -- Larimer Lounge
2/14 - Salt Lake City, UT-- Kilby Court
2/16 - Seattle, WA -- Neumo's^
2/17 - Vancouver, BC -- Plaza Club^
2/18 - Portland,OR -- Mission Theatre^
2/20 - San Francisco, CA -- Great American Music Hall^
2/21 - Los Angeles, CA -- Troubadour^
2/23 - Tucson, AZ -- Plush^
2/24 - Marfa, TX -- Ballroom Marfa^
2/26 - Norman, OK -- Opolis^
2/27 - Dallas, TX -- Club Dada^
2/28 - Austin, TX -- Emo's Jr^
3/1 - Baton Rouge, LA -- Chelsea's^
3/2 - Atlanta, GA -- Drunken Unicorn^
3/3 - Chapel Hill, NC -- Local 506^
3/4 - Washington DC -- Black Cat^
3/6 - New York, NY -- Bowery Ballroom^

* with Dirty Projectors
^ with Papercuts

Konichiwa, Mr. Matsuzaka

[Photo Credit]

Start dusting off your old Johnny Damon home jerseys. Provided, of course, that you didn't burn them in effigy last December. Or use them as toilet paper. Or shoot them. Or tape them to a claymore. That's right, 6 days off of the anniversary of JD's departure to the Evil Empire and we just signed the hottest thing outta Japan since Boris and he's gonna be rocking the 1-8. The up-to-date e-mails to JK at 6 AM, the hovering over Boston.com's Extra Bases and the all-out fear of entering the season without a bona fide fifth starter is over. Dice, dice, baby. The Diceman cometh.

Konichiwa, Dice-K, welcome to the most rabid sports town in the world. I saw your stuff this past year at the World Baseball Classic and I was impressed. Buckling knees. Backwards K on Ichiro Suzuki. Tailing fastball. Gross. And did somebody say screwball? I haven't seen one of those since I was white knuckling the keyboard of the old Apple IIGS playing Hardball. It's going to be interesting to see what that nasty little number looks like in real life. I'm pretty sure it doesn't go from one side of the screen to the other and then circle into the catcher's mitt, but if it does, I'm OK with it.

I have to tip my hat to Theo Epstein and the brain trust at Red Sox Nation HQ who took a collective hot dump on Scott BorA$$. When I doubted them the most, they called his bluff, forced his hand and signed the Diceman at a bargain price. He is the purveyor of five pitches (all from the same the same delivery) and MVP from this years World Baseball Classic. He tops out at 96 mph, is a ripe 26 years old, isn't playing for the Yankees, isn't playing for the Yankees...

I have yet to hear him speak in my native tongue, but I like him already. In fact he reminds me of Pedro. He didn't waste a minute setting the stage. Among his incentives are "a massage therapist, physical therapist, interpreter and personal assistant, and 80-90 flights [provided by the Red Sox] over the course of the deal, along with special housing and transportation arrangements and accomodations for his wife" [Boston.com]. And, of course, the number 18.

Shit, if we win the AL East World Series, I'll be his massage therapist.

MP3: Boris - "Woman on the Screen"
MP3: Forward Russia - "Eighteen"
MP3: The Rolling Stones - "Tumbling Dice"
MP3: Pearl Jam - "God's Dice" (Live in Philly, 9.2.00)

Camera Obscura: Tour Dates, Disambiguation

[Ground Control Touring]

Disambiguated at the corner of Wikipedia Avenue and Camera Obscura Boulevard. Details follow.

The Object
"The camera obscura (Lat. dark chamber) was an optical device used in drawing, and one of the ancestral threads leading to the invention of photography. Photographic devices today are still known as 'cameras'.

"The principle of the camera obscura can be demonstrated with a rudimentary type, just a box (which may be room-size) with a hole in one side, (see pinhole camera for construction details). Light from only one part of a scene will pass through the hole and strike a specific part of the back wall. The projection is made on paper on which an artist can then copy the image. The advantage of this technique is that the perspective is right, thus greatly increasing the realism of the image (correct perspective in drawing can also be achieved by looking through a wire mesh and copying the view onto a canvas with a corresponding grid on it)."
[Wiki What?]

The Scotland Indie Pop [Official Site | MySpace]
"Camera Obscura is an indie pop band from Glasgow, Scotland, formed in 1996 by Tracyanne Campbell, John Henderson, and Gavin Dunbar. The band's latest album, Let's Get Out of This Country was released on June 6, 2006; the first single from the album, 'Lloyd, I'm Ready to be Heartbroken,' is a response to Lloyd Cole's song 'Are you ready to be heartbroken'."
[Wiki Who?]

The San Diego Punk
"Camera Obscura is not pulling any punches: they're out to rock you so hard you fall onto the dance floor. The band launches its aural attack using an arsenal comprised of Michelle Maskovich's squealing keyboards, Duane Pitre's mountains of guitar squiggle, William Lamb's thunderous drums, and Russell White's urgent-yet-muffled vocals. Like a dance party during a tornado watch, Camera Obscura throws caution and moderation out the window in favor of thrilling, adventurous sound combinations.

"Camera Obscura formed in '98 in San Diego, incorporating members of The Shortwave Channel, The Interstate Ten, and Spanakorzo. The band self-released a seven-inch (now in its fourth pressing on Three One G Records) in October '98 and went on its first U.S. tour in January '99. More touring and recording followed, leading up to the release of their first full-length, 2000's To Change the Shape of an Envelope, on Troubleman Unlimited."
[Epi Where?]

Camera Obscura of the Scotland Indie Pop sort is touring the United States end o' Enero to mid o' Febrero of 2007. They have been topping a lot of blogger Top Tens [Daily Growl: #5 | Musicisnotdead: Top Ten | Chandler @ The Yellow Stereo: #2] and also made Grizzly Bear's Top Album list as well. They squeaked in to the Top 100 Sellers of 2006 over at Insound and popped a 7.8 from our homeboy Brian Howe at P4K.

I'm speaking on their behalf in kind of a round about way because I'm just getting around to it. I think it is definitely worth a $15-spot at the 9:30 Club. Someone out there made the Mazzy Star comparison in terms of the vocals and it is spot on. "Dory Previn" is a subtle bombshell of a track.

  

MP3: Camera Obscura - "Dory Previn"
MP3: Camera Obscura - "Lloyd, I'm Ready to be Heartbroken"

Upcoming Tour Dates
1/17 - Atlanta, GA - The Earl
1/18 - Tallahassee, FL - The Club Downunder
1/19 - Athens, GA - 40 Watt Club
1/20 - Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle *
1/21 - Charlottesville, NC - Satellite Ballroom *
1/22 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club * | Tickets
1/24 - New York, NY - Warsaw *
1/26 - Northampton, MA - Pearl Street *
1/27 - Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club *
1/29 - Montreal, QC - La Sala Rossa *
1/30 - Ottawa, ON - Barrymore's Music Hall *
1/31 - Toronto, ON - Lee's Palace *
2/1 - Ann Arbor, MI - Bling Pig *
2/2 - Kalamazoo, MI - Kraftbrau Brewery *
2/3 - Chicago, IL - Logan Square Auditorium *
2/5 - Columbia, MO - Mojo's
2/6 - Kansas City, MO - The Record Bar
2/8 - Denver, CO - The Bluebird Theater
2/10 - Mexico City, MX - City Hall
2/12 - Seattle, WA - Neumos ^
2/13 - Vancouver, BC - Richard's on Richards ^
2/14 - Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom ^
2/16 - San Francisco, CA - Bimbo's ^
2/17 - Los Angeles, CA - El Rey Theatre ^

* with The Essex Green
^ with Portastatic

Asobi Seksu: Rock 'N Roll Hotel, January 19th

Fear not scurvy laden friends of Metro D. Come January your body will once again be able to synthesize collagen correctly.

Last Friday might have been a bust and we may never have located Baltimore, MA, but Asobi Seksu will be invading our ear canals come 2007. I'm finally getting into their first LP after being on Citrus overload the last few days. Is Citrus creeping in to my Top Ten from 200Seksu? We will have to wait and see. At this point anything is a possibility because I am having a really hard time narrowing the year in music down.

Each of Asobi Seksu's studio releases offers something different. You can see a nice growth from the self-titled debut to Citrus, they are two separate sounds, but they still share a common, heart-tugging thread that is filled to the brim with reverb nastiness and catchy choruses. Finally the '07 shows are popping up on the calendar...

Fri Jan 19: Washington DC, Rock 'N Roll Hotel
[Calendar | Tickets]
[Official Site: Asobi Seksu]

   

MP3: Asobi Seksu - "I'm Happy But You Don't Want Me"
MP3: Asobi Seksu - "New Years"
MP3: Asobi Seksu - "Thursday"

Agnostic-approved holiday bonus track:
MP3: Asobi Seksu - "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)"

Midlake: New 2007 Tour Dates

Midlake will be doing a headlining tour to kick off 2007 due in large part to the success of this year's The Trials of Van Occupanther. I wasn't able to make the much blogged about Cold War Kids/Midlake/Sound Team shows this year so I may need some advice as to whether this one is worth catching. Local dates below. The rest here.

2/7 - Washington DC - Rock and Roll Hotel
2/8 - Philadelphia, PA - North Star Bar
2/9 - New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
2/10 - Boston, MA - Middle East Upstairs

Top 100 Songs of 2006 at RS

More on this later. Here's the Top Ten. This list gets pretty gross, quick.

10. Goldfrapp, "Ooh La La"
9. Wolfmother, "Dimension"
8. Clipse w. Slim Thug, "Wamp Wamp (What It Do)"
7. Lily Allen, "Smile"
6. Bob Dylan, "Thunder On The Mountain"
5. The Pack, "Vans"
4. T.I., "What You Know"
3. Chamillionaire, "Ridin'"
2. Raconteurs, "Steady As She Goes"
1. Gnarls Barkley, "Crazy"

Jason Reece (Trail of Dead) Interview; Samsung Spot

To some (perhaps fewer by the day), any Trail of Dead news is good news: Jason Reece did an interview with UK's Gigwise. Read the story here. It's not exactly groundbreaking but I'll take it. As mentioned to Pitchfork last month, the band has been in search of some altnernative means to making cash. Witness the following Samsung spot:

Omar + John = Instrumental Greatness

A lot of things went into me finding this track. My kitchen is a mess right now and I don't want to clean it. I don't even want to look at it. Chili, spinach dip and christmas cookies have all been created in there today and while it smells good, it is a fucking eyesore until I motivate to clean it all up.

I grab my beer, retreat to the Mac battlestation and look to see what's going on in the world. The Patriots are getting crushed. Fuck. Let's check music. Hype Machine, what's cracking? For whatever reason the trusty Hype Machine puts me on one of those time log pages, not the popular track page. I'm scrolling along and bump into a familiar name next to an unfamiliar track. I am intrigued and run down the rabbit hole to check out what Thepunkguy has to offer. He has the John-Omar Frusciante-Lopez madness I seek as well as a great tagline: "punk is the new blog." Love it.

I am sure that Frat told me about this at some point or another. As a matter of fact, I might have told him about it and then completely forgot about it. At any rate, Gold Standard Laboratories released their Special Twelve Singles Series in October of this year. On the CD are rarities from Xiu Xiu, Free Moral Agents, The Starlite Desperation, Kill Me Tomorrow, Alavaz Relxib Cirdec, and then two tracks from Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and John Frusciante. "0" is one of them and it might have just creeped into my Top Ten Songs of 2006.

It is great to listen to it and try and figure out which parts are John and which parts are Omar. There are a couple of really distinct moments (John's slow solo style creeps in at one point towards the end and Omar's off-balanced trademark approach is clearly visible throughout). For the most part it seems to be John on rhythm and Omar leading the way. Whatever it is, it is some of the most gorgeous guitar work I have heard all year.

MP3: Omar Rodriguez-Lopez & John Frusciante - "0"


[Buy it at eMusic | Gold Standard Labs]

Best Alternative Music Album; Pete

It's currently a battle between the Arctic Monkeys and Yeah Yeah Yeahs over at Spin.com. My vote was for Yeah Yeah Yeahs' Show Your Bones, which may or may not turn up on my Top Ten list for 2006 (ditto: Arctic Monkeys' Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not). I really expected Gnarls Barkley to be running away with that vote, but it turns out people love their frozen simians and Karen O.

Spin also has a piece about drug-addled Pete Doherty and the recent "children's book" that covers his escapades. One day prior to their piece on that book they covered Doherty's presence at a party where a man fell to his death:

"Pete Doherty has found himself in the spotlight again, but this time it concerns his involvement in death of a friend, actor Mark Blanco, 30, who fell to his death Sunday (Dec. 4) after being excused from a party at literary agent Paul Roundhill's East London apartment. According to reports, Roundhill, who represents Doherty, asked the victim to leave the party after he incessantly hounded the troubled rocker about his new play. Blanco was soon found lying face down with his legs around the base of a lamppost after apparently falling 30 ft."
[Read more]

Doherty puts the "shambles" in Babyshambles.

New Radiohead Tracks: December 18th

From From the Basement:

"From The Basement is a music series that features the most intimate live performances from the finest musicians on the planet.

"From The Basement sets a new standard for music TV production. The show is beautifully filmed in high-definition at Maida Vale studios in London with the live sound by producer Nigel Godrich. From The Basement has no host and no studio audience, instead the artist and their performance take centre stage.

"The first episode is very special. From The Basement launches with Thom Yorke on the piano exclusively performing songs from the new Radiohead album, alongside incredible performances from The White Stripes and an improvised collaboration between Four Tet's Kieran Hebden and genius drummer Steve Reid.

"Each episode's performances will be available via download only to allow repeated viewings. Downloads are available right here and from iTunes.

"From The Basement launches on the 18th December. Register to be kept abreast with the latest news and be the first to hear about the guests on forthcoming shows

Radiohead, Thom Yorke details:

"We present Thom Yorke playing exclusive new Radiohead material on the piano. The session features solo performances of 'Videotape' and 'Down Is The New Up' - two new tracks from the forthcoming Radiohead album, due to be released in 2007. Caught on camera before the release of his first solo album The Eraser, this recording features Yorke giving his most captivating and intimate solo performance to date.

Radiohead is in the studio as we speak. They recently took a daytrip to Somerset and posted the pics.

   

MP3: Radiohead - "Kinetic"
MP3: Radiohead - "Life in a Glasshouse (Full Length Version)"
MP3: Radiohead - "The Trickster"

Re-post: Shintillating

I don't know what was going on with our MP3s yesterday, but I fixed it (I think). I posted some other Shins tracks to make up for the dead links we tossed up yesterday. Our apologies, YouSendIt seems to be the only sure bet these days.

They of the McDonald's backlash, the Garden State plug and the Beach Boys-like harmonies are back at it. You knew this. Phantom Limb [EP] arrived this week and I haven't stopped listening to the Shins. At one point yesterday, the First Lady asked if we had been listening to the same three songs over and over for the last hour. We had, and it was the Phantom Limb [EP]. But she didn't notice or care until we had listen to each track about 20 or so times.

"Phantom Limb" is classic Shins: a catchy track, a gorgeous harmony and a bouncy-light feel with some addictive guitar fills and a hovering female vocal to boot. The other two tracks on the EP (more like CD-Single) are just as good. "Nothing At All" starts with a Springsteen riff of sorts (think "Glory Days" without overpowering drums) that is slowly overshadowed by the great vocals of frontman James Mercer. A keyboard riff winds its way into the picture, the pace picks up, the keyboard returns and your singing along by the end of it. "Split Needles (Alt Version)" gathers steam via an opening angular guitar riff and some steady drumming. Catchy lead guitar work and soothing lyrics equal more of the same from the New Mexicans. Catchy, addictive and everything that brought me into their Inverted World in the first place.

[DiS Interview | Official Site | SubPop | ShinSpace]

    

UPDATE: All of these links should be rocking now...

MP3: The Shins - "Split Needles (Alt Version)"
MP3: The Shins - "Gone For Good"
MP3: The Shins - "Saint Simon"

Muse Set for Two Wembley Shows

I mentioned previously that one of my favorite bands (and owner of my second favorite album of 2006), Muse, will be opening up the newly rebuilt Wembley Stadium. To give you a sense of just how big Muse is across the pond, they sold out the 70,000 seat venue this morning in 45 minutes @ £37.50 a pop! So they went ahead and added another one. Unreal.

Dead Star/In Your World Double A-Side
MP3: Muse - "Dead Star"
MP3: Muse - "In Your World"
MP3: Muse - "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" (very entertaining Frankie Valli cover)

Top 2006 Songs of 2006

That's right. Someone actually did it. Anytime you make a list this big you are begging for hits controversy. I don't have the time or energy to debate a list of 2006 songs regardless of the year, decade, half-century or millenium in question. I will however point out one of the funniest comments I have read on a blog all year. Naturally, it is signed "anonymous":

Where are the Fratellis? One of the best albums of 06. Oh, right. It isn't soft and mushy indie shit. People have been wondering just what "indie" means for a long time. Apparently it means "music for overly sensitive mama's boys who think this is the kind of music that will get them laid when all it really can do is land them in friendland....."

That Fratellis album is sick. Any thoughts on where "friendland" is? One more note, the world where a Nelly Furtado track (+ or - the presence of Timbaland) beats out the greatness of Band of Horses' "The Funeral" - whether it is a world called "friendland" or not - is not a world I want to be living in.

Covering Down: Band of Horses

I haven't watched the O.Cizzle in a while. In fact I only ever caught about 4 or 5 episodes. After that smoking-hot lesbian (bi?) girl (who apparently is also a star in the new JT flick Alpha Dog) peaced out I cashed in my chips. My fair lady has also parted ways. She's to busy throwing the clicker at the TV when a repeat of Grey's Anatomy graces the TV (last night) to worry what type of good, clean fun Seth and Ryan are cooking up.

Wondering why Metro Destruction is talking about The O.C.? Me, too. Turns out, Band of Horses is catching some buzz for covering The New Year's track "End's Not Near" for The O.C. Mix 6. The list of songs (and bands) is pretty solid, but I haven't heard all of it. I am usually only a cover guy when the band that does it truly gets it done (see Pearl Jam, Ben Harper). Nevertheless, the Band of Horses track got me thinking: this isn't the best cover I have heard from these guys. Good track? Yes. As good as their Otis Redding cover of "Chained and Bound"? Not even close.

UPDATE: Link for MP3 is now good to go.

MP3: Band of Horses - "Chained and Bound"

Asobi Seksu! Tonight! Somewhere?! Maybe??

I don't know where Baltimore, MA is and I am not sure what time of day TBA is, but it's December 8th now and Asobi Seksu is supposedly playing Baltimore, MA tonight. Now, Baltimore, MA could easily be Baltimore, MD by way of a typo. Kind of like how that "k" in Seksu could easily be an "x" depending on your location in the internets.

Logic suggests MA is MD because last night they played Local 506 in Chapel Hill, NC (Go Heels!) and tomorrow night they play Khyber Pass in Philadelphia, PA. I've done a little bit of traveling up and down the eastern seaboard and the last time I checked Baltimore is between Chapel Hill (Go Heels!) and Philly.

I don't know. TBA is TBA and could mean MIA or "naga naga not gonna happen." I will keep you posted if we hear, read, or see anything. At any rate Asobi Sexsu's sound is shoegaze through and through, but it also has Stereolab and Velvet Underground qualitites falling into their musical fold.

I'm no Brian Howe when it comes to interpreting symbols on my iPod, but the word on the street is that Asobi Seksu means "playful sex" in Spanish Japanese. Additionally, they just released a live CD that you can pick up at Insound. They got all creative on us and named it "Live at the Echo 10/6/06". Click on the links and get your Vitamin Citrus.

  

MP3: Asobi Sexsu - "Strawberries"

[Official Site: Asobi Seksu]

News & Notes

*Pete Doherty & Babyshambles played a gig in a car park today to promote a clothing line that he inspired. I am hoping it is some avant-garde/Derelicte stuff along the lines of shirts made out of needles and rusty spoons.

*Wilco is readying a new album for 2007. You can preview the tracks via live versions at Jesse Jarnow's Frank and Earthy Blog.

*Robert Smith/The Cure are getting a lot of buzz right now, mainly because Robert Smith is smack dab in the middle of some writer's block.

*The new Bloc Party video for "The Prayer" is here. Via Stereogum. Via Pitchfork. I want what Kele's drinking.

*Great Beyonce track over at fluxblog.

Grammy Nods

As always, you gotta take this with a grain of salt. The full list of Grammy nominations is available here. They didn't do half bad in some of the categories, and by that I mean there isn't a notable fuck-up like, say, oh, Jethro Tull getting nominated for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance. I was interested to see Wolfmother catch a nod and it seems like the Arctic Monkeys buzz definitely got to the Grammy folks.

While I like Petty's album and I love Tom Petty, I don't know how well it stacks up against some of the others that are out there. It just seems like anything U2/Bono, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and the like do, it is going to catch Grammy recognition (Petty's received 16 Grammy noms since 1981). I was surprised to see Pearl Jam absent from the Rock categories, but not shocked. Their relationship with the Grammys has been a rocky one beginning with Eddie's strange acceptance speech for "Spin the Black Circle".

Death Cab for Cutie caught a couple of nods and snuck into the Best Pop Performance. They are up against the likes of Pussycat Dolls, Keane, The Fray and The Black Eyed Peas to form one of the stranger collections of artists in a category. Weird. Mary J. Blige led the pack with 8 nominations, while the Red Hot Chili Peppers brought in 6. Metro D's awardees/categories of note follow...

Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal
(For established duos or groups, with vocals. Singles or Tracks only.)
"My Humps" The Black Eyed Peas
"I Will Follow You Into The Dark" Death Cab For Cutie
"Over My Head (Cable Car)" The Fray
"Is It Any Wonder?" Keane
"Stickwitu" The Pussycat Dolls

Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance
(For a solo vocal performance. Singles or Tracks only.)
"Nausea" Beck
"Someday Baby" Bob Dylan
"Route 66" John Mayer
"Saving Grace" Tom Petty
"Lookin' For A Leader" Neil Young

Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal
(For duo, group or collaborative performances, with vocals. Singles or Tracks only.)
"Talk" Coldplay
"How To Save A Life" The Fray
"Steady, As She Goes" The Raconteurs
"Dani California" Red Hot Chili Peppers
"The Saints Are Coming" U2 & Green Day

Best Hard Rock Performance
(For solo, duo, group or collaborative performances, with vocals. Singles or Tracks only.)
"Crazy Bitch" Buckcherry
"Every Day Is Exactly The Same" Nine Inch Nails
"Lonely Day" System Of A Down
"Vicarious" Tool
"Woman" Wolfmother

Best Metal Performance
(For solo, duo, group or collaborative performances, with vocals. Singles or Tracks only.)
"Redneck" Lamb Of God
"Colony Of Birchmen" Mastodon
"Lies, Lies, Lies" Ministry
"Eyes Of The Insane" Slayer
"30/30-150" Stone Sour

Best Rock Instrumental Performance
(For solo, duo, group or collaborative performances, without vocals. Includes Rock, Hard Rock and Metal. Singles or Tracks only.)
"Chun Li's Flying Bird Kick" Arctic Monkeys
"The Wizard Turns On..." The Flaming Lips
"Black Hole Sun" Peter Frampton
"Catsellorizon" David Gilmour
"Super Colossal" Joe Satriani

Best Rock Song
(A Songwriter(s) Award. Includes Rock, Hard Rock & Metal songs. For Song Eligibility Guidelines see Category #3. (Artist names appear in parenthesis.) Singles or Tracks only.)
"Chasing Cars" Nathan Connolly, Gary Lightbody, Jonny Quinn, Tom Simpson & Paul Wilson, songwriters (Snow Patrol)
"Dani California" Flea, John Frusciante, Anthony Kiedis & Chad Smith, songwriters (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
"Lookin' For A Leader" Neil Young, songwriter (Neil Young)
"Someday Baby" Bob Dylan, songwriter (Bob Dylan)
"When You Were Young" Brandon Flowers, Dave Keuning, Mark Stoermer & Ronnie Vannucci, songwriters (The Killers)

Best Rock Album
(Vocal or Instrumental. Includes Hard Rock and Metal.)
TRY! John Mayer Trio
HIGHWAY COMPANION Tom Petty
BROKEN BOY SOLDIERS The Raconteurs
STADIUM ARCADIUM Red Hot Chili Peppers
LIVING WITH WAR Neil Young

Best Alternative Music Album
(Vocal or Instrumental.)
WHATEVER PEOPLE SAY I AM, THAT'S WHAT I'M NOT Arctic Monkeys
AT WAR WITH THE MYSTICS The Flaming Lips
ST. ELSEWHERE Gnarls Barkley
SHOW YOUR BONES Yeah Yeah Yeahs
THE ERASER Thom Yorke

Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album
(Vocal or Instrumental.)
SOLO ACOUSTICS VOL. 1 Jackson Browne
BLACK CADILLAC Rosanne Cash
WORKBENCH SONGS Guy Clark
MODERN TIMES Bob Dylan
ALL THE ROADRUNNING Mark Knopfler & Emmylou Harris

Best Compilation Soundtrack Album For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media
(Award to the Artist(s) and/or Producer(s) of a majority of the tracks on the album, or to the individual(s) actively responsible for the concept and musical direction and for the selection of artists, songs and producers, as applicable.)
BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN Various Artists
CARS Various Artists
GREY'S ANATOMY — VOLUME 2 Various Artists
LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE Various Artists
WALK THE LINE Joaquin Phoenix & Various Artists

Best Recording Package
THE BEST WORST-CASE SCENARIO Ryan Clark, art director (Fair)
PERSONAL FILE Randall Martin, art director (Johnny Cash)
REPRIEVE Ani DiFranco & Brian Grunert, art directors (Ani DiFranco)
10,000 DAYS Adam Jones, art director (Tool)
VERSIONS Neal Ashby & Matthew Curry, art directors (Thievery Corporation)

Producer of the Year, Non-Classical
*Howard Benson [EVERY MAN FOR HIMSELF (Hoobastank); FLY LEAF (Flyleaf); IN WITH THE CROWD (Less Than Jake); ONE-X (Three Days Grace); THE PARAMOUR SESSIONS (Papa Roach); POPAGANDA (Head Automatica); SAOSIN (Saosin)]
*T Bone Burnett [THUNDERBIRD (Cassandra Wilson); THE TRUE FALSE IDENTITY (T Bone Burnett); WALK THE LINE SOUNDTRACK (Joaquin Phoenix & Various Artists)]
*Danger Mouse ["Pieces Of The People We Love" (The Rapture); ST. ELSEWHERE (Gnarls Barkley)]
*Rick Rubin [AMERICAN V: A HUNDRED HIGHWAYS (Johnny Cash); "God's Gonna Cut You Down" (Johnny Cash); STADIUM ARCADIUM (Red Hot Chili Peppers); TAKING THE LONG WAY (Dixie Chicks); 12 SONGS (Neil Diamond)]
*Will.i.am ["About You" (Mary J. Blige Featuring Will.i.am); "Big Girls Don't Cry" (Fergie); "Damn Girl" (Justin Timberlake Featuring Will.i.am); "I Am Somebody" (Santana Featuring Will.i.am); "I Love My B****" (Busta Rhymes Featuring Kelis & Will.i.am); "Mas Que Nada" (Sergio Mendes Featuring The Black Eyed Peas); TIMELESS (Sergio Mendes)]

Best Short Form Musical Video
(For an individual track or single promotional clip. Award to the Artist and to the Video Director/Producer.)
*"8th Of November" Big & Rich; Robert Deaton, George Flanigen & Marc Oswald, video directors; Robert Deaton, George Flanigen, Steve Lamar & Marc Oswald, video producers
*"When You Were Young" The Killers; Anthony Mandler, video director; Gina Leonard, video producer
*"Here It Goes Again" OK Go; Dan Konopka, Damian Kulash, Jr, Timothy Nordwind, Andy Ross & Trish Sie, video directors; Dan Konopka, Damien Kulash, Jr., Timothy Nordwind, Andy Ross & Trish Sie, video producers
*"Dani California" Red Hot Chili Peppers; Tony Kaye, video director; Rachel Curl, video producer
*"Writing On The Walls" Underoath

Best Long Form Music Video
(For video album packages consisting of more than one song or track. Award to the Artist and to the Video Director/Producer of at least 51% of the total playing time.)
*FLOW: IN THE STREAM OF MUSIC, Terence Blanchard; Jim Gabour, video director; Robin Burgess & Jim Gabour, video producers
*DIRECTIONS, Death Cab For Cutie; Noah Gelb, video producer
*DEMON DAYS - LIVE IN MANCHESTER, Gorillaz; J.C. Hewlett, video director
*I'M GOING TO TELL YOU A SECRET, Madonna; Jonas Akerlund, video director; Susan Applegate, Angela Becker, Keeley Gould, Shelli Jury & David May, video producers
*WINGS FOR WHEELS: THE MAKING OF BORN TO RUN, Bruce Springsteen; Thom Zimny, video director; Thom Zimny, video producer

PJ Rocks; Jeff Ament Interviews Jim James

One of the cool things about Pearl Jam's Ten Club (aside from the Christmas singles, and priority with tickets) is the magazine Deep that they put out twice a year. Volume 1, Issue 2 just arrived last week and it has a lot of interesting things. On one page there is a letter from the California Avocado Commission thanking Pearl Jam for choosing the avocado as "the quintessential minimal pop art image" on the cover of their latest studio album. On another page they show fans where $2 from their ticket purchase went during their recent tour (Washington, DC, Future of Music Coalition). They continue to impress. I was also happy to stumble across an interview that Jeff Ament did with Jim James from My Morning Jacket. Turns out Jim and I have a similar taste in movies. An excerpt follows:

JA: What, besides music, inspires you to write? Do you have a favorite room, car, trail or spot?
JJ: Like most people I hear talk about making music. I like to be alone. Normally it is a 5-step process for me: 1. A song just pops into my head, usually with full instrumentation, etc-I quickly try to find my minidisk or 4-track and just hum it into the mic or whatever to remember it. 2. I sit down at the 4-track and try to flesh out a nice demo. 3. I take it in to tha boyz and we knock it around, play it over and over and shift it around till we get it all in place. 4. We record it in the studio as best we can. 5. We play it live and let it grow.

JA: There seems to be a big shift rhythmically between It Still Moves and Z, what inspired that shift?
JJ: For Z I wanted to focus more on the bass and drums and keys as the groundwork for the song and less about the guitars. If you listen to a lot of the classic songs-especially a lot of old soul and Motown shit-it rocks sooooo hard and what you notice when you listen to the mix: "almost no guitars!" Now, I love guitars-but the music was just kinda sounding more guitar free, and we tried to make so that when a guitar came in you'd really notice it. Plus I'm a big fan of the less is more philosophy now than I was, being that if there is less thing to listen to in a sound spectrum, each one gets more air. It's like in a song, where there is a huge drum solo or breakdown, the drums sound HUGE cause your ear gets to hear all the air and pumping, but when the band comes back in they just sink back into the mix. I was wanting there to be less in the mix to begin with.

JA: You had a big year with Boston Pops, Bonnaroo, a lot of touring....how long of a break will you take before you start rehearsing/demoing for the next record? Any places you want to tour that you haven't been yet?
JJ: We will do a US tour for our live record in Nov. and Jan. After January I want to take off indefinitely so as to just write and work on songs and not hurry. Who knows what might come up so we may do some stuff here and there but we need to just chill.

JA: How about top 5 of each: books, movies, records, paintings/graphic works?
JJ: Records - 1. What Does It Take (To Win Your Love), Junior Walker and the All-Stars; 2. Heatwave, Martha & the Vandellas; 3. Life is Like a Musical, Outkast; Satan Is Real, Louvin Brothers; anything by Roger Miller
Movies - 1. Little Miss Sunshine; 2. The Shining; 3. Rushmore; 4. 2001; 5. Snakes On a Plane
Bookes (right now) - 1. A Man Without A Country, Kurt Vonnegut; 2. Wind Up Bird Chronicle, Murakami
As for paintings and photos - I have been a really big fan of looking at what my fellow band mates, as well as girlfriends (like Tom's fiancee Linda - great photographer) and crew have been taking on this run of Europe. I feel like it is so awesome to experience some of the greatest works of art I have ever seen in some of these churches and chapels, and then see them through the eye and camera lens of someone I have been with while viewing the place is very surreal. It is amazing how many infinite viewpoints exist in one place in time.

Snow Patrol, Silversun Pickups & OK Go @ Bender Arena, March 23

That's Bender Arena at American University. I was really hoping this was going to be D.A.R. Constitution Hall (in fact SSPU's MySpace page still has it listed as D.A.R. Constitution Hall), but what can you do? Just to give you an idea, Bender Arena holds roughly half the people that the GMU Patriot Center does. Capacity will be 6,000 for a concert setup, where GMU Patriot Center holds 10,000 for basketball games alone (not counting the floor seats).

9:30 Club presale goes off tomorrow from 10 AM to 10 PM and tickets are on sale to the public starting Saturday, Dec. 9th at 10 AM. Snow Patrol made the wise choice of not butting up against Grey's Anatomy on a Thursday night.

Snow Patrol
[Official Site | MySpace]


Silversun Pickups
[Silversun Pickups | MySpace]


OK Go
[Official Site | MySpace]


Rest of Snow Patrol, SSPU, and OK Go dates
Feb 26 Memorial Coliseum / Portland, OR
Feb 27 Key Arena / Seattle, WA
Mar 01 Bill Graham Civic Auditorium / San Fran, CA
Mar 02 Gibson Amphitheatre / Los Angeles, CA
Mar 03 SDSU Open Air Theatre / San Diego, CA
Mar 05 Saltair / Magna, UT
Mar 06 The Fillmore Auditorium / Denver, CO
Mar 08 Cain’s Ballroom / Tulsa, OK
Mar 09 Nokia Theatere / Grand Prairie, TX
Mar 10 Stubbs Bar-BQ / Austin, TX
Mar 11 Verizon Wireless Theater / Houston, TX
Mar 19 Bank United Center / Coral Gables, FL
Mar 20 Hard Rock Live / Orlando, FL
Mar 21 The Arena at Gwinnett Center / Duluth, NJ
Mar 23 Bender Arena (AU) / Washington, DC
Mar 24 Tweeter Center / Camden, NJ
Mar 26 Theater at MSG / New York, NY
Mar 27 Theater at MSG / New York, NY
Mar 28 Agganis Arena / Boston, MA
Mar 30 Metropolis / Montreal, QC
Mar 31 Ricoh / Toronto, ONT
Apr 01 State Theatre / Detroit, MI
Apr 02 Aragon Ballroom / Chicago, IL
Apr 04 The Pageant, St. Louis, MO
Apr 05 Eagles Ballroom / Milwaukee, WI
Apr 06 Northrop Auditorium / Minneapolis, MN
Apr 07 Burton Cummings Theatre / Winnipeg, MB
Apr 09 MacEwan Hall / Calgary, AB
Apr 10 Shaw Conference Center / Edmonton, AB

Video: Peter Bjorn and John - "Young Folks"

Is it just me or is this some scary-ass shit? Great, great tune and the female vocal (Victoria Bergsman of The Concretes) is fantastic, but the vibe of the video gives me that "everything's not right" feeling that I get when I see, like, an American Apparel ad on the side of a website. Yeah, I'm talking to you Pitchfork.

Fear and Loathing in DC

Me being me, I read fluxblog to find out what is crack-a-lacking in my own backyard. The 150+ comments on this post at DCist discuss Norfolk & Western's fear and loathing in Northwest DC. While they paled in comparison to some of Metro D's brighter nights on the town, the comment section has gotten real interesting. Here's the post in the Local Cut that started it all:

Washington DC proved to be a less pleasant experience for all of us. DC is not the safest city in the world to begin with, and according to my sources, the club we played at was located in a particularly bad area. The guy running sound at the club was hands down the worst soundman any of us have ever worked with. He obviously didn't give a flying fuck about making it sound good and actually alternated between seeming annoyed and laughing at us when we demanded unreasonable things like, oh, turning the microphones on, or turning down the bass. During Corrina's set, Joe looked like he was either going to kill somebody or cry. After the show, as we were loading out our equipment, our van was surrounded by what I can only assume were six or seven gang members complete with bandanas and masks over their faces. They just stood there, staring at us shoving thousands of dollars worth of equipment into the van piece by piece. A couple of them even leaned up against the van, casually smoking cigarettes. Corrina got pissed off and said, 'You guys want some of this shit?' to which one of them replied, 'Fuck yeah, I want some of this shit. I've got thirty years, bitch.' They didn't leave, even after all of the gear had been loaded into the van. I've never been so happy to leave a city in my life.

The icing on the cake? We got paid twelve dollars for the gig.

xo,

Dave

Dave, I know it was DC, and it was dark and they were dressed in gang colors, but you guys roll seven deep and pack a plethora of foreign objects that can be used to your advantage. I mean, look at the size of that - what is that - a trumpet crossed with a tuba? You could really lay a beating down with that. And who's that hiding in the shadows packing an accordian? Damn! Another thing that has me guessing...when Corrina asked "you guys want some of this shit?" was she referring to "twee pop," as in "you want some of this 'twee pop' madness?...muthafucka?"

All jokes aside, the comments at the DCist seem to suggest several things: 1. DC can be scary when you are in a certain place, at a certain time, 2. some people are racist, 3. the sound guy at DC9 is a dick and doesn't like loud music, and 4. Norfolk & Western won't be breaking that ass off on some twee pop madness in DC anytime soon. With the thug on band crimewave currently sweeping the nation/world (most recently Subtle in Barcelona) I completely understand what's running through Norfolk & Western's head when someone's hovering around their van at 2 AM. While I can't personally speak for the quality of the sound guy at DC9, I can say there are times when DC is a little shadier than I want it to be. But, it's a city, and that's the way life is. It's not an excuse, just the truth. I would hate to think that DC is the worst place they've been, but it wouldn't surprise me or upset me. I guess it's too bad that this band sparked this type of reaction. The chance of them coming back anytime soon is pretty much severed and that message board has exposed some sad realities about people in general.

DFA 1979 Re-issue: Head's Up

There isn't a band in the land I miss more than Death From Above 1979. They blew me away opening up for Nine Inch Nails and Queens of the Stone Age in January, and before that split my head ear to ear with You're A Woman, I'm A Machine. They continued to impress the more I explored their catalog. It all ended too soon, but the boys from Toronto left an indelible mark, set the bar on opening acts for big time arena bands, and made me thankful that I caught them at least once.

Insound kind of sums it all up with the re-issue of Head's Up:

ONE BASSIST AND ONE DRUMMER; LOUD ENOUGH TO MOVE THINGS IN YOUR PANTS. The first offering from Toronto's Death From Above has been captured on this overloaded CD. Featuring members of Femme Fatale, these six songs will pummel you with rock 'n' roll intensity while making you lick the dance floor at a Stooges show. Hear two instruments make sounds louder then any 4-piece band ever could. Hear tales of lost friends, sluts, and cocaine. Hear pop music get stripped naked, smashed to pieces, and reassembled into a distorted, abrasive mess. This is the death of everything you once knew about rock music.

MP3: Death From Above 1979 - "Do It" (Live)

Did Ali Invent Rap?

I don't know. I don't think so. It just sounds like an attention grabbing way to introduce people to a celebration of Ali. Let's just celebrate Ali for the sake of celebrating Ali. We don't need to make some crazy correlation to do so. Just watch the tapes of the Rumble, the Thrilla, or any other Ali fight. The guy was amazing.

My dad had the opportunity to see Ali work out in Boston years ago. His father, my grandfather, was a Boston firefighter, knew the right people and there they were in a small gym in Brookline watching the greatest of all time work out. When he was on the bag, you couldn't see the bag. When he jumped rope, you couldn't see the rope. When he shadowboxed you could barely follow his hands. Let's celebrate stories like that. Let's not - let's not - watch Charlie Gibson do spoken word Ali.

I, naturally, came across this article looking for more news, better news, newer news in regards to the hot stove maneuverings of the Red Sox. The videos are great, particularly the first, but I have to agree with Klosterman, watching people recite Ali kind of defeats the point. I haven't seen the whole thing - and I will watch it - but it does rub me the wrong way. Don't recite his lines. Don't imitate him. Tell me a story. Tell me what it was like to watch Ali enter the ring in Zaire with an entire nation behind him. But don't give me Charlie Gibson spoken word. Please.

Chuck D? Chuck K? Your thoughts, please.

"Public Enemy front man Chuck D, the host of 'Ali Rap,' [airing Saturday at 9 P.M. ET on ESPN] is a man who has always understood the relationship between rap and sports. Chuck claimed to have adopted his rapping style from Marv Albert (listen to the opening 15 seconds of 'Rebel Without a Pause' if you need proof). Half of the documentary features an undefined collection of modern-day celebrities (James Earl Jones, Diane Sawyer, Al Sharpton, Adam Corolla, Ludacris, Bill Maher, etc.) reciting famous Ali quotations as spoken-word poetry. This almost never works; almost all of the stand-in participants sound ridiculous, particularly the ones who are Caucasian and named Charlie Gibson. However, the actual archive footage of Ali talking is amazingly watchable and mildly shocking, even if you've seen most of it before. Ali is arguably the greatest boxer of the 20th century, but he also might be one of the most charismatic conversationalists ever (which - all things considered - is a far more rarified achievement).

"While it's difficult to prove Ali invented rap music, it's almost indisputable that he spawned what is now referred to as 'the modern athlete,' a term that's generally used as coded, pejorative language. When someone complains about 'the modern athlete,' he or she is usually just saying, 'This particular black athlete behaves like a rap star, even though I've never actually listened to rap music in my entire life.' These perceived traits include overt self-promotion, indifference toward authority, and confidence that hemorrhages into arrogance. As such, the relationship among Ali, sport, and rap is latently omnipresent, and examples of that three-pronged relationship are everywhere: 50 Cent buys Mike Tyson's house, Master P tries out for the Toronto Raptors, Ron Artest releases 'My World,' dead-end kids in Houston drink cough syrup and wear McGrady jerseys, and Fort Minor's 'Remember the Name' is used as bumper music for 90 percent of televised college football games that don't involve Notre Dame. You can see these connections without even looking for them. But the deeper (and more meaningful) correlation between hip-hop culture and sports is more opaque; it has less to do with what they tangibly offer and more to do with how they're similarly covered by the media."
[Chuck Klosterman at Page 2]

Bloc Party: Pre-sales, B-sides

From Aversion.com:

"Bloc Party's set plans for its first single from its upcoming album, and you're going to have to go on a shopping spree if you want to get all the B-sides.

"The band revealed its 'The Prayer' will be the lead single from its upcoming A Weekend in the City, which hits stores Feb. 6 from Vice Records. The single, which will be released in a single CD format and as a pair of different 7-inch releases, makes its debut Jan. 29 from Wichita Recordings in the United Kingdom. CD B-sides are 'We Were Lovers' and 'The Prayer (Phones Metal Jackin' Mix),' while vinyl lovers get 'England' and 'Version 2' on their respective flip sides."

From Insound.com:

"Be one of the first 1000 people to pre-order the new Bloc Party album, A Weekend In The City, and receive a FREE LIMITED EDITION 7". This INSOUND EXCLUSIVE vinyl features two tracks, 'I Still Remember' and an unreleased B-side, 'We Were Lovers'! Quantities are limited so order now. This won’t be repressed!

"THIS ITEM IS A PRE-ORDER AND WILL SHIP ON OR NEAR THE FEBRUARY 6TH RELEASE DATE.

"Bloc Party's newest collection of songs, A Weekend in the City, is a stunning, intense and brilliant follow-up to their celebrated debut, Silent Alarm. A Weekend in the City is inspired by lead singer Kele Okereke's interest in what he calls the living noise of a metropolis. On Weekend, the band captures every detail from the ebullient to the mundane of daily life in a modern city, and the quiet desolation that suffuses everything from commuting to casual sex, from going out on a Friday night to the long ride home near the early hours of the morning. These are songs desperate to understand the meaning that pulses under the moments of our every day; they're bursting with tension, paranoia, sadness, love, and an intense need for reasons as to how city life has become so displacing. Not since Radiohead's OK Computer has a British band explored the diseased state of modernity so completely."

From BlocParty.com:

"Bloc Party's A Weekend in the City [isn't] out until the 5th of February (UK) and the 6th of February (US), but it's available for pre-order now.

"You can now pre-order the band's forthcoming album online.

"In the UK there is a standard limited edition album available which includes an exclusive DVD."

You can currently stream the new single "The Prayer" at Bloc Party's MySpace page. There are more details about the UK singles at Blog Party and Good Weather for Airstrikes has an mp3 (via Vice Records) of Kele Okereke discussing "The Prayer." As with the Interpol post, I know this is day late/dollar short stuff, but I have been busy.

MP3: Bloc Party - "Tulips" (Club Version)
MP3: Bloc Party - "Hero" (Single Version)

Clap Your Hands Say January 30th

From Clap Your Hands Say Yeah's MySpace page:

"We have a new record coming out on January 30th called Some Loud Thunder. It is our second album!

"For those of you who can't wait until the 30th, you can buy the album directly from us in the mp3 tradition, thanks to our good friends at Insound, starting on January 16th. Then we'll send you a real-life copy of the record soon after for free. We'll also have an exclusive t-shirt available for those of you who decide to buy the record directly from us.

"So here's the track list:
1. Some Loud Thunder
2. Emily Jean Stock
3. Mama, Won't You Keep Them Castles in the Air and Burning?
4. Love Song No.7
5. Satan Said Dance
6. Upon Encountering the Crippled Elephant
7. Goodbye to Mother and the Cove
8. Arm and Hammer
9. Yankee Go Home
10. Underwater (You and Me)
11. Five Easy Pieces

"Listen to 'Satan Said Dance' and 'Underwater (You and Me)' on here, and then head over to our website, where you can also hear and download 'Love Song No.7' and 'Underwater (You and Me)'."

Also over at Insound, a limited edition tour EP from CYHSY, Takka Takka and Architecture In Helsinki:

INSOUND EXCLUSIVE! LIMITED! Once these are gone they are gone forever! 2006's hottest show line-up comes together on this limited edition tour EP. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah contribute three live versions of their soon to be classics including: 'Some Loud Thunder', 'Gimme Some Salt', and 'The Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth.' The equally as hot Architecture in Helsinki follow suit with live versions of their ever-so-popular: 'Feather In a Baseball Cap' and 'It's 5!'. Finally Fall 2006 Tour EP is rounded out with a live version of 'They Built You Up Too Fast',a track from the newcomer of the group, Takka Takka.

MP3: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - "Underwater (You and Me)"
MP3: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - "Love Song No. 7"

JK's Favorite Albums and Songs of 2006

Tis the season for lists so I'm going to throw my picks into the mix. This is by no means what I would call a Top Ten because everyone's opinion is different. These are my favorite albums and songs of the year; some mainstream, some not so much. As anyone who reads this blog can attest, we certainly do not skew towards one particular genre (indie) or way of life ("hipster"). Most, if not all of these albums and songs have been mentioned numerous times on this site so I'm not going to explain each in detail.

Albums:

11. What Made Milwaukee Famous - Trying to Never Catch Up
10. Band of Horses - Everything All the Time
9. Peter Bjorn and John - Writer's Block
8. Pearl Jam - Pearl Jam
7. White Whale - WWI
6. Silversun Pickups - Carnavas
5. Tokyo Police Club - A Lesson in Crime EP
4. The Thermals - The Body, The Blood, The Machine
3. Priestess - Hello Master
2. Muse - Black Holes and Revelations
1. TV on the Radio - Return to Cookie Mountain

* Also getting votes: Wolfmother, Midlake, the Hold Steady, Beck, ¡Forward, Russia!, ...Trail of Dead, Tool, the Kooks, the Decemberists, the Black Keys, Hot Chip.

Songs:

10. Tokyo Police Club - "Nature of the Experiment"
9. Tool - "Vicarious"
8. Band of Horses - "The Funeral"
7. Heavens - "Patent Pending"
6. Midlake - "Young Bride"
5. Peter Bjorn and John - "Young Folks"
4. Silversun Pickups - "Lazy Eye"
3. The Thermals - "Pillar of Salt"
2. Muse - "Map of the Problematique"
1. TV on the Radio - "Wolf Like Me"

More to come from InMyTree, he has the keen ability to turn these posts into works of art whereas I tend to be lazier about it.

For Reference:
[2005 Favorite Albums (in order): Bloc Party, Silent Alarm; Cloud Cult, Advice for the Happy Hippopotamus; Wolf Parade, Apologies to the Queen Mary; New Pornographers, Twin Cinema; Maximo Park, A Certain Trigger; The National, Alligator; ...Trail of Dead, Worlds Apart; Spoon, Gimme Fiction; Broken Social Scene, s/t; Jose Gonzalez, Veneer]

Interpol

[Interpol : MySpace]

I am finally getting a chance to absorb some of the news and goings on from the past few weeks. Work has been a bear and the grad school apps haven't helped. Floating around the web today, I decided to check out Interpol's website to see if they were responding (or inciting, perhaps) any of this news about their work in their studio for what could be their major-label debut. Turns out they are taking a page out of the Thom Yorke playbook and dropping quasi-cryptic notes:

Ladies and Gentlemen,
We are now recording album 3. The studio is in NYC, and we're enjoying being local.
The atmosphere and the environs of a recording facility affect the sound and feel of an album in the subtlest ways.
And we are affected. And it is subtle.
Sounds great so far. But we'll be here for a while yet.
Upward and outward. Begin, begin.
Big kisses all around.
Interpol

I am expecting plenty of Import singles with red, black and white covers, overflowing with remixes. Bring it on, fellas.

MP3: Interpol - "Fog. Vs Mould for the Length of Love"

Muse to Open New Wembley Stadium

Queen, Guns N' Roses, Pink Floyd, Elton John, Madonna, Metallica...Muse. Big news from the Muse camp this morning, they will headline the first concert at the newly rebuilt Wembley Stadium on June 16, 2007 (previous names all played the old stadium). While some may not agree that they have earned the right to be included amongst said monsters of music, in my mind they are the clear leaders of a younger generation of arena bands. It should be noted that the CAPACITY IS 75,000. They're ready.

Silversun Pickups on Late Show with David Letterman

As we mentioned last Monday, Silversun Pickups made their network debut on Friday night's Late Show with David Letterman. I think their performance was decent; the vocals never seemed quite right (possibly due to nerves) and they shortened the song by about a minute (possibly for tv reasons). Regardless, it was great to see them on the show and after the commercial break, both Paul and Dave took a moment to provide some glowing feedback. I think they may have picked up a few fans with this effort.

Reintroduction to Hip Hop: Clipse

I haven't fully listened to a hip hop album in years. Simply put, I gave up on it. After Jay Z's Black Album, not one album appealed to me. My frame of reference is always going to be early Tribe Called Quest, B.I.G. and Wu Tang - including some amazing debut solo - releases. I even skipped over Ghostface's critically acclaimed Fishscale, although I think I may be ready to check it out. Well, I couldn't ignore the reviews of Clipse's new album Hell Hath No Fury. Adding to my reason of intrigue is an album fully produced by the Neptunes (who are behind countless Pop and Hip Hop hits across the years) and these boys are from my home state, VA. I'll always plead old school (because I'm getting kind of old) so I'm not sure I would deem this an instant classic but I have to say this is pretty damn good. The thing that impresses me most is the length of the album and the lack of "skits." Absent are all of the shitty intros, outros and skits that often water down a quality hip hop album. This is an album without any filler, just 12 quality tracks that you can listen to all the way through - the way a great album should be. I will always be a rock guy at heart but this one may be worth a look.

MP3: Clipse - "We Got It For Cheap"
MP3: Clipse - "Hello New World"
Buy