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Archive for May 2008
(ed. note: When putting this piece together, we had some technical difficulties with the music player. They’re fixed — full album stream after the jump.)
Solid pop music is a commodity these days and, too often, the things I hear are simply “pretty good” or “okay”. However, in the mailbag today was an email from Brooklyn band called Anthem In. I don’t know how else to say it: I haven’t stopped listening to it from the second I put it on, so I’m very pleased to tell you about the band and about the record itself.
The self-released debut from this foursome comes out on June 24th and is well worth more than a cursory listen. Instant comparisons to lots of other bands will come to mind — Teenage Fanclub, Sloan, Rogue Wave, Death Cab For Cutie, Pinback — but the comparisons are only to give you a place to start from. There’s no Xeroxing going on here — if anything, there’s subtle referencing that never sounds forced.
So, if you already like any of these bands, Anthem In’s self-titled debut will be instantly gratifying. This is the kind of beatific album which walks the fine line between indie pop and radio rock, never stepping too far in either direction, always pulling you further and further in until they’ve got you right where they want you. More music and a giveaway after the jump.
God, I cannot wait to see MGMT at Bonnaroo 2008. I love this video.
In a week during which retrospectives on 80’s electronic and hip-hop are the trend, it only seems fitting and appropriate to re-examine Manchester-born 808 State’s first (ed. note: it wasn’t their first single oops!) (and most well-known) recording, “Pacific State”. Mixed, remixed, repackaged and reissued innumerable times, the original version (which appeared on 1989’s EP Quadrastate) loses no power or edge with time. The perfection of their execution makes “Pacific State” the supreme benchmark of acid house: lush, synthetic harmonies blended with driving TR-808 rhythms.
I’d say we’re pretty lucky that Rephlex Records has just reissued a fully remastered edition of Quadrastate complete with additional tracks. If you dig what you’re hearing here, you’d do well to head on over to Amazon and pick up the remastered edition to hang on to.
The reissued Quadrastate is available from Amazon by clicking here.
When we heard that Heavy Bass Champion Drop The Lime aka Curses was teaming up with Vice and Colt 45 to perform in some bigger cities this month, we were kinda pissed because well…we’re all really broke, can’t afford to drive to any of these places, and really wish we could! But if you live near any of these fine cities, you should go get ready to dance your ass off on our behalf.
Like any great party, you are required to RSVP in order to attend. So, here’s an MP3 to check out, hot off the presses (courtesy of Vice) and you can see the full listing of dates with RSVP information after the jump.
While the world waits impatiently for Evil Urges, the highly-anticipated new release from My Morning Jacket (due June 10th from ATO Records), we thought we’d take a minute to remind everyone exactly why Louisville’s favorite sons My Morning Jacket blew up in the first place. This late-night performance from Bonnaroo 2006 was one of the catalysts in their meteoric rise. If you wonder why everyone is jocking MMJ these days, check this out then come see them at Bonnaroo 2008. I guarantee you’ll see one of us Loudersofties there rocking out with you.
Back before samples had to be wait eons to be cleared, back in a day when uptown hip hop crews and downtown punks were checking out each other’s shows trying to learn a thing or two, there lived Steven Stein and Doug DiFranco — two pioneers whose adventures would transform them into the hip-hop superheroes known as Steinski and Double Dee.
Rabid music fans and hip-hop enthusiasts with day jobs on the edges of the biz, they got their “big break” in 1983 by winning a Tommy Boy Records remix contest for Play That Beat, Mr. D.J. by G.L.O.B.E. and Whiz Kid. The remix has come to be known in the annals of hip-hop as “Lesson 1 - The Payoff Mix” — an incomprehensible sampladelic jam of breaks from funk and disco records that reads (just as the name suggests) like a time capsulized history lesson. It was from works like these that, much like the graffiti kids tagging stray subway trains with spray paint cans, a cult of “illegal art” in music was born. More music and full review after the jump.
I was cleaning out an old hard drive, and I came across this random collection of hip-hop songs that I pieced together into a little mix with the plan of giving it to you guys at some point in time. Short term memory and life crises all coming together, I guess I forgot about it for a while. Well, better late than never, I guess. Here’s a (possibly the most) random collection that I guess I (at some point) cobbled together for your listening pleasure. I know you gonna dig this.
TRACKLISTING:
1 - Clipse, “Dirty Money”
2 - Ghostface Killah, “Kilo”
3 - Robin Thicke ft. Lil’ Wayne, “Shooter” (clean)
4 - Nas, “Hip Hop Is Dead”
5 - Chubb Rock ft. Biz Markie, “No Head, No Backstage Pass”
6 - Public Enemy, “New Whirl Odor”
7 - ????? with Three 6 Mafia, “Stay Fly” (Remix)
8 - Gil-Scott Heron, “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised”
Forums are ablaze with people chatting, construction is well underway at the farm, and the excitement for year 7 of the ultimate 4-day music summer camp is bristling everywhere you look. Yes, Bonnaroo 2008 will be here before you know it and you really, really want to go. You know you do. You know you want to drop everything and head to Manchester, TN for four days to camp and enjoy some of the best and brightest musical acts out there.
In a summer that is fueled by speculation on everything from gas prices to the economy to the ballot in November, Bonnaroo offers a welcome getaway from everything. Your cell phones will probably work and you might be able to blog from your tent using your satellite card, so you don’t have to lose touch with the outside world if you don’t want to. But to really get the full experience of Bonnaroo, we want your suggestions on how to make the ‘Roo the most fun for you.
The Unofficial Bonnaroo 2008 Pre-Festival Questionnaire:
Are you going to Bonnaroo this year? If not, why not?
How many times have you been to Bonnaroo?
Which year was your favorite and why?
What is your best memory of years past?
What are you most looking forward to about the festival this year?
What music acts are you most excited to see?
Are you using this as an opportunity to reunite with old friends from years past?
What changes are you looking forward to seeing this year from years past?
Is the high price of gasoline causing you to consider whether or not to go?
Loudersoft would love your answers to these questions to provide you with the best possible coverage of Bonnaroo 2008. Answer as many or as few questions as you want & be sure to pass the link along to friends who have attended or are planning to attend. Write as much or as little as you want, but be completely honest. We’re looking forward to seeing lots of you in Manchester in a couple of weeks.
In the last 40 years, Reverend Al Green has gone through a number of spiritual changes and incarnations. His voice is instantly recognizable, a hallmark that has come to represent what people associate with classic R&B and soul music. I couldn’t give you a number, but I’d be willing to bet that a whole lot of you babies out there were conceived to the strain of love songs like “Let’s Stay Together”, “Still In Love With You, “Call Me”, “Take Me To The River” and so many more. The house that Al Green and Willie “Pops” Mitchell built at Royal Studios in Memphis, the Hi Records sound if you will, has remained an untouched legacy that seemed to speak of an era gone by.
Come to find out that Ahmir “?uestlove” Thompson and James Poyser had “a run at Al Green” (to use ?uest’s own words) over the last two years at Electric Ladyland in NYC. Fans of soul music might be tempted to overlook a new recording by Al Green because, well, they’re just convinced that his best years are behind him as a performer. With the arrival of Lay It Down next week on Blue Note, the death knoll of the Hi Records sound is silenced entirely and, with it, a new generation has the opportunity to experience the genius that is Reverend Al Green.
The meticulous craftsmanship with which this album was designed, from the way in which it was engineered, recorded and mastered to the choice of musicians, leaves the listener wondering, “Did they make this record in 1973 and keep it in the vault for 35 years?” The roots rhythm and blues mixed with touches of gospel are an extension of Willie Mitchell and Al Green’s dream rather than a carbon copy of his past works. James and ?uest got it all in there: Al Green’s rich multi-dimensional vocals are all here, complete with pitch-perfect falsettos.
It’s a welcome resurrection of Al Green and Willie Mitchell’s Hi Records sound, full of lush backing vocal arrangements, congas mixed with tiny drums, the pure soul dynamite of the Dap Tone Horns, Poyser turning it out on the Hammond B-3 and the unparalleled guitar work of the late Chalmers “Spanky” Alford. The 12 songs on Lay It Down don’t come across as a cheap attempt at imitating a sound; it has the feel of an old friend who you’re glad to see again, slipping on your favorite pair of shoes, enjoying a big plate of your favorite fried chicken and biscuits or, maybe, like falling in love for the first time. There is no caricature or sad figurine of an aging star in this album. It is as if the 24-year-old Al Green has come back to tell us, “I haven’t gone anywhere, baby. I’m still here.”
In an effort, I suppose, to bring the “process” up to date, guest appearances from wonderful vocalists like Anthony Hamilton, John Legend and Corinne Bailey Rae are smattered throughout the record. On one of the songs we’re previewing, “Take Your Time”, Corinne’s sexy alto duet adds a respectable, if occasionally pitchy, flavor to the great Reverend’s unwavering falsetto. However, these guest appearances serve as more of a distraction rather than an addition. While not unpleasant, the guest appearances actually magnify the series of legendary performances on this record which belong to Rev. Green himself.
And no star shines brighter than Reverend Al Green himself, after all. His inspired songwriting and performances on this album offer inarguable proof that through his incarnations and changes, Al Green has never lost connection to the very style that he originated. Lay It Down is well poised to be my number one album of 2008, a shining example that the house Hi Records built lives on. Run, don’t walk, to get your hands on this.
Al Green - Just For Me
Al Green - Take Your Time (Feat. Corinne Bailey Rae)
You can purchase Al Green’s Lay It Down by clicking here.
Moby’s playing a free exclusive live set in LA this week for 200 lucky fans as part of a Yahoo! Nissan Live Set.
Fans can enter to be part of the studio audience at –
http://nissanlivesets.com/pickme.
He’ll be playing a full band set of songs from his new album Last Night, old faves, and a couple of surprises. It’ll be a first-time chance to catch these new songs performed live in a really cool, intimate setting at Fox Studios. More info and a/v from the new album below.
Yahoo! Music and Mute Records want you to join us when Moby takes the stage for Nissan Live Sets in West Los Angeles, CA.
May 21, 2008
7 pm (subject to change, you need to arrive two hours before)
Location: West Los Angeles
The first 200 fans to submit their name and their guest’s name will get in the doors for this exclusive taping. Just go here to submit or for more info: http://nissanlivesets.com/pickme
Listen to Moby’s Last Night album sampler
