Blog On The Motorway

The Octagon steps into your living room. UFC on FX 1: January 20, 2011

2012-01-20T23:40:00.000-08:00

2012; Is this the year UFC becomes widely accepted? Will Mixed Martials Arts be deemed a sport fit for everyone? I don't know, but UFC on FX1 was a giant fist knocking on America's door. The message is clear; the UFC has landed and fighters are coming from far and wide to compete in the highest level of mixed martial arts. From here on out your shots are limited and to impress you must entertain. The Nashville card featured countless UFC debuts from hungry fighters clawing at a spot on the roster along with a handful of UFC mainstays.

Fuel TV took the honors of showcasing the undercard and struck TV gold. Knockouts, Submissions and even a human drama. During the pre-show commentary veteran UFC bruiser Stephan Bonner told the fans what they might not already know, they are lucky. 6 hours of fighting on cable TV, all 10 bouts of the evening. No other sport goes to the lengths to feed the fanatical fans and on Friday night everybody was happy.

In the first bout it only took 22 seconds for bantamweight Canadian Nick Denis to use a rare tool, clinch elbows, to knock out Joseph Sandoval. Sandoval got stormed early and Denis showed killer instinct not allowing Sandoval to recover from the first hard shot he took. This bout is the closest to a re-enactment of playing the UFC Undisputed video game on easy. It doesn't get much better than that and Denis, in his UFC debut, took home the 'knockout of the night' bonus which gave him an extra $45,000. In one evening he surpassed the median income for an American household according to the US Census* And yes I know he's Canadian and he passed their median too.

All this comes in the shadow of a flawed yet scathing report from ESPN's Outside The Lines. In a story that broke right after UFC Rio 2, the UFC were accused of taking advantage of 'show openers' with low pay and unfavorable contracts. Yet after Friday's program, what up-and-coming fighter wouldn't PAY to be part of the organization. The UFC is still developing and Friday's show proved their is a wealth of talent out there lining up to compete and more importantly fight.

The next two bouts showcased why age and experience still have a spot in MMA. 2 veterans (Daniel Pineda and Fabricio Camoes) submit two previously undefeated fighters (Pat Schilling and Tommy Hayden) within the first round. The two fights were quick but they were high level and entertaining.

Next up featured the return of Charlie Brenneman, who last year became a fan favorite when on two days notice he stepped up in his hometown as a heavy underdog and beat rising star Rick Story. Sadly the could-be Cinderella story was cut short in his next fight when Anthony "Cookie Crumble" Johnson head kicked him out of consciousness in his next bout. The fans still love him and Friday night in Nashville he took on the tough Daniel Roberts. Their is not a lot of flash in Brenneman's game but his hard work and constant energy makes him a fun guy to root for. In a 3 round decision Brenneman took home the win and he'll return to the gym to keep on developing his skills.

It's said "never leave it in the hands of the judges" and there is more to that statement than you may think. The UFC's new deal with FOX provides mixed martial arts with an avenue into America's living room. It's an opportunity that cannot be squandered. On May 31, 2008 CBS took a chance on mixed martial arts and presented "EliteXC Primetime." The card was headlined by YouTube brawler Kimbo Slice. The result was a total letdown and it must have been embarrassing for everybody at CBS and probably the whole sport. The card was excruciatingly long, their was 'poke in the eye' no-contest, and the main event was a total bust. Slice won against a real jobber in James Thompson by way of questionable knockout and in the post-fight interview he was so exhausted he could barely stand let alone answer questions. Slice was humbled and never recovered. His looks and attitude make him a scary guy, but all those muscles require a lot of oxygen, and any fighter will tell you that is not a good thing. Perhaps Kimbo should take the reverse route of Brock Lesnar and call up Vince McMahon. In the UFC's presentation of mixed martial arts to the masses they are being very smart. UFC on FOX in November was a clearly calculated simple formula. One hour for one fight between two heavyweights for the UFC Heavyweight Championship. You just knew there was no chance the judges would have to render a decision. Two towering titans throwing leather. When you have an attentive audience you must deliver and the UFC is going to require not only winning but putting on a show. Winning 3 straight is a huge feat in top level MMA, but if you do in a boring fashion then you aren't helping yourself. A prime example came later on the UFC on FX main card when Mike Easton defeated Jared Papazian in a forgettable match. The 3 judges cageside gave the match to Easton but i'm sure the judgmental fans could care less. Luckily this was the only dud of the night and in retrospect that is amazing for a 10 bout bill.

The 5th preliminary bout of the night was a tongue twister for the announcers. Kamal Shalorus of Iran vs Khabib Nurmagomedov or Russia. Shalarous is a late blooming veteran who was dominated by the young unknown Sambo technician Nurmagomedov. The pace was fast and Shalarous was lucky to survive the first round after being knocked on his back by a counter left hook. Yet the veteran recovered, but never fully and was finally submit via rear-naked choke in the third round.

At this point there was only one fight left to go and this preliminary card was turning out to be far more entertaining than most other promotions main cards. Making the headline bout even more exciting was the fact that Jorge Rivera had announced a day earlier that this would be his last fight in the Octagon and in the sport. 15 times he had entered UFC's Octagon and in his career he has fought the likes of Anderson Silva, Rich Franklin, Chris Leben, Michael Bisping, and the list goes on. His opponent was Eric Shaffer who had fought 9 times in the UFC dating back to 2006 but had never put together enough wins against the right opponents. It was clear the fans wanted Rivera's swan song to be special. In a Hollywood like ending Rivera first found himself defending off his back against Shaffer's onslaught. But after being reset on their feet in round 2 Rivera bloodied and slowed Shaffer before landing consecutive hard shots to force the 'best in the business' Herb Dean to stop the fight. Jorge Rivera was overcome with emotion and walked to the center of the octagon, kissed the mat, and waved goodbye. In a statement at the press conference Rivera explained his decision to retire was mainly due to his age but also the caliber of young guys coming up the ranks in the UFC. He called them "no joke."

In the opening bout on FX, two heavyweights in do-or-die situations battled it out in a grueling bout. Christian Morecraft had never made and octagon statement and Pat Barry had been knocked down (and usually choked out) in any attempt at toppling a name. The bout opened stuffy and cagey for 2 minutes until the men slowed to put on a show. Barry and Morecraft exchanged blows until Pat Barry slipped a punch and threw a bomb left hook to knockdown and out Christian Morecraft. The big man tumbled and Barry laid on powerful shots until Morecraft was out. Almost as entertaining was the post-fight interview in which Barry apologized for being a common choke victim in the Octagon. Props to Barry for realizing not many pundits had much faith. Yet the showing lands Barry back in 'big fight contention' as it's lovely to say.

After the Easton-Papazian snoozer came solid action. Duane 'Bang' Ludwig fresh off finally getting credit for UFC's 'fastest knockout' stepped in with 44 fight veteran and 'honorary Diaz brother' Josh Neer. Neer had signed with the UFC an unheard of four times...four times! Ludwig seemed to have the upper hand in the first few exchanges showcasing his Muay Thai skills with powerful knees to the body. Neer was swollen and bloodied until he found gold in Ludwig's exposed neck. Neer sunk in an elbow high choke that didn't even give Ludwig enough time to finish tapping out before he was passed out. Neer, a true mixed martial, artist calmly notified Josh Rosenthal his opponent was out the bout was stopped 3 minutes into the first round. Neer is going to be fun to watch, again.

Finally, the headliners made their way to the cage to end a great night for the sport, FOX, and the UFC. Jim Miller and Melvin Guillard are two high ranking lightweights hoping to 'get back into the title picture.' In his last bout the humble Jim Miller was humbled by Ben Henderson who is now in training to face the champ Frankie Edgar. Likewise Guillard's last fight was over in under a minute after he was caught charging into a Joe Lauzon punch and then quickly submit. Both men needed a win. At the opening it was Guillard piling on pressure and throwing a lot of flying knees. He certainly hurt Miller but not enough. Miller is a fighter who keeps on fighting and is still dangerous when hurt. Guillard's mistake was giving up his back and even standing Miller was able to lock in a rear-naked choke. Guillard's weakness is his submission defense and it's something he needs to really work on. In 2012, a successful UFC fighter needs to recognize that their weakness will be exploited by any headlining fighter. You can no longer get by with only your strength, you can no longer be one-dimensional.

You could not have asked for more in the first real event put together by FOX and the UFC. The 2012 schedule is slowly coming together and the stakes have been raised. In the next two weeks their is another dose of free fights on FOX proper with Evans Vs. Davis and then Super Saturday in Las Vegas with Nick Diaz vs. Carlos Condit on PPV. Let's hope the big names watched Friday's fights in Nashville and got the message that mediocrity won't be a step forward. Evans has to impress or the masses will call for Dan Henderson vs. Bones Jones. Georges St. Pierre may stay injured if Nick Diaz does to Carlos Condit what he did to BJ Penn. It's a new year and a new era for mixed martial arts and an even better time to be a fight fan.

*http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/income_wealth/cb11-157.html

2 years of silence

2012-01-19T11:47:00.001-08:00

I haven't posted a blog post in 2 years and instead of creating a new blog for bullshit i'm just going to kick this one back up again. Hopefully more to come.

This blog is changing.

2012-01-18T17:28:00.000-08:00

Just letting you know. I don't have any fans so......this is now like my live journal or some shit. You're warned.

ALBUMS OF THE YEAR 2009

2009-12-29T14:15:00.000-08:00

#1 Crocodiles – Summer Of Hate

I am obviously biased. Crocodiles are my friends. But this is my #1 album of the year. I love the songs and I’m really excited for the future. 2009 started with Crocodiles having self-released a 7” single and one tiny tour under their belt from end of 2008. They did “Summer Of Hate” themselves and went on to sign a great label deal and end up on the front page of the NY Times by March. I have yet to stop listening to this album. Crocodiles are great songwriters and this year they killed it and really brought me a lot of happiness. What more could I ask from an album of the year.

#2 Ian Brown – My Way

I picked up this album when I was in the UK because there are no US plans for release and it’s IB; a legend who gets a lot of love in my household. I read he wanted to make an album like Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.” He succeeded. This album is amazing. Vintage IB swagger with some great songs. IB even surpassed the UK’s expectations and this record is a gem.

#3 HEALTH – Get Color

Something about spastic noise mixed with a reason to dance really works for me. HEALTH killed it this year by coming out the gate with “Die Slow” and dropping Get Color. Once again, bias because they are friends, but I don’t mind because I will watch HEALTH live any day of the week.

#4 Au Revoir Simone – Still Night, Still Light

My friend Scott said it best; he called this album a ‘Volkswagen commercial.’ Mellow synth pop from 3 ladies. This is a great relaxing album that flows from start to finish. I am impressed and this is easily their best work to date.

#5 Cold Cave – Love Comes Close

My friend Sean tipped me to Cold Cave early on and I was intrigued. Everything I heard was dark, synth-y, and in a Factory Records vein. When I got the advance I was blow away with the songs. This is a great album from a guy (Wes Eisold) who has been pushing the envelope for years. This is his first true endeavor into a more accessible style and it’s extremely impressive.

#6 Crystal Antlers – Tentacles

I call them the ‘hipster Mars Volta’ which they hate. Fact is Crystal Antlers are a great band and Tentacles was their debut full-length. I saw these guys live a handful of times throughout the year and was blow away everytime. Never a bad show. Bias again, but 2010 is going to be huge for Crystal Antlers. They are my friends and I have faith in them.

#7 Dirty Projectors – Bitte Orca

“Stillness in the Move” was the first Dirty Projectors song I loved. This album is unique, very different, and not for everybody. That said, I really like it, and I think it’s an important album.

#8 Mark Olson + Gary Louris – Ready For The Flood

There is just something special about two lifelong friends shedding any title or presentation and just writing great songs together and quickly recording them. Mark and Gary are/were The Jayhawks and this little sleeper of an album amazed me on first listen.

#9 Odawas – The Blue Depths

Years ago I was introduced to Odawas because I loved a tune on their debut. I stuck with them but didn’t like the 2^nd album. Now the 3^rd, make or break in my opinion… The Blue Depths is a haunting 80’s inspired Canadian trip that just works. It’s a unique offering and I know it won’t get tons of love but this album is for me and I’m a fan.

#10 Dinosaur Jr – Farm

I don’t think anybody expected Dinosaur Jr. to deliver an album like Farm. It rocks, it’s classic Dino Jr, it’s loud, and it’s got songs.

#11 Julian Casablancas – Phrazes For The Young

I’m not a big Strokes fan. I thought Julian was just the mouthpiece. I was wrong. Great album, great songs, great vibe…just too short. This is a spectacular album that will certainly gain more and more recognition in years to come.

#12 Young Widows – Old Wounds

Kurt Ballou of Converge fame produced this album and hit it on the head again as he has done times before. Young Widows are a good band but Kurt’s production made this album great. This is a unique rock album and will be something I’ll listen to for a while.

#13 Kylesa – Static Tensions

Southern metal. Good songs, great drive to the album and a great metal record.

#14 These Are Powers – All Aboard Futures

I’m intrigued with These Are Powers. They are certainly a unique hip entity and they proved it with ‘All Aboard Futures.’ Choppy. Artistic. Honest.

#15 Pictureplane – Dark Rift

Pictureplane is bringing back the beat. Rhythm, dancing, songs, and fun. A good step in the right direction for a young artist.

#16 Wavves – Wavvves

I’m thoroughly impressed with Wavves. “The next Beck” my friend Scott says; I agree. I love his live show and love the songs, but in all honesty the recording quality is piss poor and makes my head hurt when I listen through good speakers. I expect some great things from Nate in the future but this album will be around for a while.

#17 Blank Dogs – Under and Under

NYC’s DIY hero drops a proper full-length on In The Red. Everything that Blank Dogs represents displayed on this record; somewhat of a debut. The songs are there and I expect a lot from Blank Dogs in the future on many levels.

#18 Magik Markers – Balf Quarry

This is not your typical album; filed in ‘Experimental’ which does not do it justice. Magik Markers have been around for a while and this is a great album. It’s unique of course but they have found their sound and I commend them.

#19 Real Estate – Real Estate

This was a sleeper for me. At first listen it didn’t grab me but then all the sudden it hit and I get it. I’m looking forward to the future of Real Estate, they have a ton of potential.

#20 Beatles - Reissues

The difference can be explained like this. A myspace stream vs. a 320kps tune through a Bose. Sheds a new dimension to the catalog of the greatest band ever.

SINGLES/SONGS

Ancient Crux – Interracial Coupling EP

“Something Roy Orbison would shit out” early press quote. Kids from Murrieta, CA making awesome music.

El Perro Del Mar – “Love Is Not Pop” (SONG)

Story: Heard EPDM years back, kinda dug it. Years later, not digging new stuff. Saw her at Iceland Airwaves ’08 and was impressed. In 09 she drops this and I’m sold. The album is not nearly as good as this song, but still a good album.

SALEM “Frost” (Single)

Neil at Origami Vinyl turned me on to these guys and I was blown away. Dark and unique. This is a great tune.

Abe Vigoda – “Wild Heart” Reviver EP

Hitting their stride. “Wild Heart” is sorta a cover of Stevie Nicks and it’s beautiful. Abe V is going to release a great album in 2010 as long as the have proper time in the studio (which they have never had before).

The Big Pink – “Velvet”+“Dominos”

England’s The Big Pink came out of the gate with two solid singles. And then that was all she wrote. Shit live, the rest of the album is a dud, and a horrible US approach.

Animal Collective – Fall Be Kind EP

Never liked AC until I heard them sing “What Would I Want? Sky” and it’s pure Richard Ashcroft and it reminds me of why I love the Verve (thanks Jen) and so I like this EP.

Conclusion: Final Thoughts

I always have a nice little rant for my best of lists and this year is no different. What is going on in the music industry? Furthermore, what is going on in the entertainment industry? That is how I see it now; it’s not just music, the whole business around ‘the arts’ is just shot. Movies are huge gambles for studios and it certainly doesn’t help when you can steal on the internet them prior to release and not have to drive to the theater, pay $11, or deal with crowds. Obviously, downloading has crippled music. But I’m more concerned about how boring and stagnant entertainment is becoming. In fact, how unentertaining, entertainment is. American Idol and TMZ scare me. Attention spans are now measured in milliseconds. I remember losing my shit when I got a Gameboy. Now kids play extremely realistic war games with headsets thru the internet with other kids around the world. Why even leave the house? The internet has everything; news, communication, entertainment, games, porn…you name it. I feel like a renaissance man and that is what I think we need. We need a cultural renaissance to stimulate creativity of tomorrow. American Idol will not do this. TMZ will only hinder this. What have we become? Someone please inspire me. Go against the grain and go for the throat of mass-media. Lo-fi was great in 2009, but is not the answer. Hipsters don’t fund artists; they suck their blood and then discard them. Rolling Stone is unreadable and full of shit. The Grammy’s nominations this year are a complete joke and embarrassing. It’s said that during a recession, creative minds flourish….well, I’m here and I’m waiting.

2008-12-23T12:04:00.000-08:00

ALBUMS OF THE YEAR 2008

#1 Sebastien Tellier - Sexuality
Vintage Serge Gainsbourg meets Justin Timberlake. Easily my favorite album of this year and in my top 10 of all-time. A full 360 of an album that is diverse and superb at every moment. The closing track “L’Amour et La Violence” (The Love and The Violence) is haunting and pure genius. I could easily listen to this album on repeat for ages and did so in 2008. The album is immaculately produced by Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo of Daft Punk and blends all the talents of Sebastien Tellier from his previous work. A great driving album, a wonderful time-piece, and something I won’t stop praising for years to come.

#2 Young Jeezy – The Recession
True Story; I had 30 minutes to kill so I stopped by Second Spin. It was Tuesday (aka new release day) and they were playing a hip-hop record in the store. After walking around for 20 minutes I was like, man, this record sounds good…so I bought it. It was Young Jeezy – The Recession and it’s a great record. Who’d of thunk a southern rapper could have predicted the economic downturn? “Black President” (feat. NaS) should be one of the tracks of the year.

#3 Torche - Meanderthal
This album is a ripper. Heavy enough to scare off the masses, yet melodic enough to warrant some rock radio play. The album is great from start to finish and addictive. I heard this in a listening station and was taken aback by it. I look forward to anything and everything Torche.

#4 Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds – Dig!!! Lazarus!!! Dig!!! / The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford OST
Nick Cave at the Hollywood Bowl was everything I could have wanted from a Bowl show. Whereas Dig!!!... is a wonderfully blunt record which has hints of Grinderman (my last year’s #1 album) , his soundtrack work with Warren Ellis is equally as powerful. Nick Cave is superior to most and in the last couple of years he has hit a creative stride that I’m in love with.

#5 Lykke Li – Youth Novels
This is a superb album. Great pop songs, great production, great everything. I give Lykke Li props as this album was released over 2 years ago in her home Sweden yet she continually tours and performs for US audiences despite her obvious tire of repetition. I was extremely impressed with this and look forward to her next output.

#6 Sigur Ros - Með Suð í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust
I picked up this album because I knew when it came out that I would be going to Iceland later on in the year for Airwaves. Although not a typical Sigur Ros album I definitely loved it. At first it didn’t sound like a typical Sigur Ros album but after a few listens the songs stood out enough to make me forget.

#7 Lindstrøm – Where You Go I Go Too
A few years back I got my hands on a live mix of Lindstrøm and Prins Thomas and was floored by the coming of nu-disco. Since then I have been salivating for everything Lindstrøm. At SXSW I saw him “spin” (totally laptop) in a cowboy bar and he was great, but it was not the place for him to be. This album is 3 tracks of perfect desert driving music. Electronic overtures.

#8 Fuck Buttons – Street Horrrsing
Live at the Reykjavik Art Museum sealed it for me. I was saddened to have to venture into the “experimental” section at Amoeba when this is really just an Electronic record. Sure there are some huge Noise aspects but the album itself is an atmospheric tidal wave of drone fused melodies. Fuck Buttons is up my alley and I’m cool with that.

#9 The Kills – Midnight Boom
I remember when the Kills first started gaining hype and I saw them a few times in NY and bought the introductory EP and then album. I liked it, but wouldn’t consider myself a fan. Then the next album dropped and I happened to see them on that tour by chance, still like it, but eh. Finally it came at this year’s SXSW when I happened to be at a party and they took the stage. I gave the typical, “I’ll give it a song or two” thought and I was very surprised when they blew me away. The new songs they played were superior to the old and the live set-up was great. A very good album from a now matured “shtick-y” band.

#10 Genghis Tron – Board Up The House
Hipster metal. 3 bearded scholar types playing some heavy metal without a drummer. This album has a few things I love mixed with some annoyances, yet it all comes together nicely. Ambient layers along with songs about zombies, but with a fair amount of screaming. Immaculate production (Kurt Ballou, did Torche too).

#11 Abe Vigoda – Skeleton
These guys are my buddies and I’d been eagerly awaiting the release of this bad-boy for ages. Tropical-Punk from Pomona kids is unique and interesting. I expect these guys to move onward and upward for some time into a Talking Head’s like group. Go LA.

#12 Human Highway – Moody Motorcycle
I really like Nick Diamonds, even though I’ve heard from numerous sources he’s a complete a-hole. I loved the first Islands record, the second one was kinda boring, but I was definitely impressed with Human Highway. “The Sound” is a great hit, and the title track is just as good.

#13 Duffy - Rockferry
I buy lots of records; common fact. I didn’t know what to expect from Duffy except I heard she sucked live and was not as pretty as creative camerawork has made her out to be. She can sing though, the songs are good, and this is a good album. Lots of haters out there with so many solo songstresses this year, but Rockferry is a very good album.

#14 Retro Stefson - Montana
The best band nobody has ever heard of….from Iceland. Manu Chao’s Radio Bemba Sound System meets Vampire Weekend. The best live show I’ve seen in ages, especially from a band whose ages range from 16-20.

#15 The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age Of The Understatement
Another “shot in the dark” when I picked up this album yet I was taken aback by it. A lot more mature than the Arctic Monkey’s and a great theme along with the perfect use of strings.

#16 Yeasayer – All Hour Cymbals
Soggy Brooklyn-ites who ooze hipness, yet I can’t get over the style, sound, and songs on this album. A great mood record that trails off a bit at the end but is still strong and memorable.

#17 Bun B – II Trill
RIP Pimp C. This year I decided that hip-hop should be incorporated more into my lifestyle and Bun B was big on that. A good banger of a record, perfect for the treadmill and my new-used Honda Accord.

#18 Booka Shade – The Sun And The Neon Light
I am a fan of electronic music and was happy to be impressed with the new Booka Shade. They killed it live at Coachella and was the first electro group to land the whole “adding my own vocals” to tracks. A good rhythmic piece with some great house aspects.

#19 Tricky – Knowles West Boy
I am on a few mailing lists in which I get advances of some weird records. Upon getting the Tricky album I didn’t know what to expect but it’s my duty to listen to everything. This is a phenomenal record that isn’t all over the place like some of his recent outings. Lots of mellow gems on this bad boy.

#20 Glasvegas - Glasvegas
“Geraldine” is a hit, a true single. The rest of the album takes a while to grow but is still solid. Lyrically there are some problems and I don’t like some of the borrowed classical music, but it’s nice to see a new Scottish band coming up with a solid debut. I smell sophomore slump like a mofo though.

Flops/Total Bummers

Why did the Killers have to go with Jacques Lu Cont (aka Stuart Pierce) for their new album? Do 2 good remixes and a Madonna album warrant such a move? Result: Another bad record by the Killers. Whoopee. Lyrically a tadpole compared to 90% of what is out there and just misguided. Great photos too, you all look dumb.

Wal-Mart Exclusives: Seriously, not cool. First the Eagles, then Bryan Adams…why force me into the retail version of Lucifer? I can’t handle going to Wal-Mart, I just feel as if I’m killing puppies by giving them my hard earned dollar. Is music retail so bad that Wal-Mart takes over? Why let that happen?

More Hate ’08 coming soon…

Best Live

The Warehouse Project (October - Manchester, UK): Under a train station, a maze of post-industrial northern England brick walls. The line-up was Tricky, The Whip, Late Of The Pier, Rev and the Makers, and a ton more, but the vibe was pure party and the atmosphere is what any good show should be.

Yelle (Coachella): I give Yelle props because she was headlining a small ten t at Coachella up against some huge headliners and she delivered an amazing show that was filled with kids. Her album had barely surfaced in the US but there were all these kids going nuts for her. Kids are the future right? The best live act I saw at Coachella that year, seriously…that must say something.

Bryan Adams (Acoustic at The Roxy): Okay, most people know my love of Bryan Adams is superior to few. I had the chance to go with Los to see him play almost 3 hours acoustic 5 feet in front of me at the Roxy and it was pure class. He did it because he wanted too, he was having fun and playing as long as he wanted, and I love him. Icon.

Ricky Hatton TKO-ing Paulie Malignaggi (MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, NV): Okay, not music but watching Ricky Hatton pummel Paulie Malignaggi live in Vegas in November was one of the best experiences of my wee life. Liam and Noel of Oasis walked his belts into the ring and Ricky delivered by beating Paulie into submission. Forever “…walking in a Hatton wonderland.”

Conclusion: Final Thoughts

This year was a great year for new music, far better than others. Lots of “Best of Lists” were filled with debut albums and I think that is a great sign. Sure, industry changes, blah blah blah, but this is art, so we must all embrace creativity. I like nothing more than hearing a debut album that is amazing and gets me giddy. This year, I have to give props to one thing that made my life so much easier. Zune, the Zune Marketplace, and the Zune Pass. I don’t work for Microsoft, but my friend Megan does and she gave me a Zune player and I decided to drop the $14.99 a month (the cost of a CD) to “lease” all the music from the Zune Marketplace. Um, amazing. I highly recommend it to everybody I know. Sure, you don’t own MP3’s but you have the ability to “download” anything you want and put it on your Zune player. Every Tuesday I get newsletters that let me know what records are coming out and to the Marketplace I go downloading anything that sounds interesting. If I don’t like it, then I delete it. ‘Brick and Mortar’ record stores are few and far between and I can think of 10 that closed in 2008 that I was familiar with. Entertainment is all around us and I don’t expect people to buy lots of CD’s when they are hard to find and money is far from plentiful these days. Yet the Zune Pass gave me the chance to embrace all types of music, not just the new stuff. Having the ability to download a catalog is pretty sweet and lots of records you can’t even find in stores (like Rod Stewart’s “Tonight I’m Yours” (1981)). Enough of my Zune sales pitch that a few of you may have become accustomed too. Embrace the future already, listen to new music and do whatever it takes to find it.

People I Hate

2008-08-27T10:24:00.000-07:00

Manus Boonjumnong (Boxer, Thailand)...he's the shithead in blue.

He's a boxer out of Thailand that is the 2004 Athens Olympic Gold Medalist and the 2008 Beijing Silver Medalist in the light welterweight class. He fights in the "Olympic style" which basically means that he is good at scoring points but if you took off the helmet and put him in with anybody else for a full 12 rounds then he would crumble like the little bitch he is.

Olympic style boxing has evolved into one of the most frustrating and boring displays in recent Olympic history. They are so concerned with "safety" that you barely touch the guy and viola...a point. What was terribly present in the Beijing Olympics was that those of Asian countries (or Asian descents) scored a lot more points for doing the exact same thing as everybody else...it was a sham and may have ruined Olympic boxing for generations to come.

Now back to dipshit Manus. After his Athens 2004 Gold Medal he was awarded over $600k from the Thai boxing association for winning Gold...call it extra incentive. What'd he do...he partied, he squandered it in clubs and it was so bad that he was given a bag of clothing and put on a plane to Cuba to train there and "get in shape" for Beijing 2008. Okay, he partied...whatever...my problem lies with his cocky attitude. He dances around the ring and showboats which pisses me off royally. Where-as other boxers in Beijing were cautioned and warned (+2 points to your opponent) for showboating, Manus got away with it, and continued to score with is pussy punches. The judging favored him due to his history, what a bummer. His attitude was so annoying that going into his Gold Medal match with a feisty Dominican I was praying for a knock-out.

Luckily, there was no way to NOT judge the fight against Manus in a true display of his true colors. The Dominican came out firing and coming forward and took Manus way off guard. He burrowed in like a rodent and was landing great shots on the inside and poor Manus was starstruck. Manus has long arms...most fighters with long arms can only fight on the outside, meaning scoring points based on stepping back and tagging your opponent on his way in...longer arms, less danger of getting tagged by your opponent. My favorite though was when Manus was down a few points going into round 3 (of 4) and he couldn't adapt. A true champion boxer would change there style to get points, but Manus is a one-trick pony who could only do what he always does, but this time he had no chance. At one point in the fight Manus was even given a standing 8 count due to the powerful punches landing on his chin...he was still cocky and played it off like it was no big deal, but guess what...standing 8 counts = points for your opponent and lots of momentum. Adios Manus, you suck, I hate you, and I hope I never hear from you again.

Olympic boxing motto; get ahead early and then pot-shot when your opponent is forced to come after you. There is nothing pretty about Olympic boxing right now, it's boring to watch, the judging is horrendous, there are clear favorites, and it's not a true display of the sport.

I love boxing, but Beijing was a disgrace....such a disgrace that they are talking of eliminating boxing from the Olympic program. That sucks.

Boo Beijing Olympic Boxing.

2008-07-09T16:14:00.000-07:00

For some reason, i'm all about blogging again. I like writing, i find it exciting, even if nobody reads it. It's been a while for my opinionated nonsense.

Here are a few things I want to talk about:
-Albums of 2008 that rip so far (we have had some winners)
-and other stuff.

Sebastien Tellier - Sexuality (Record Makers)

This album came out at the end of February in France and England and is just classic. It's produced by Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo (1/2 of Daft Punk) and it's absolutely stellar. Imagine Justin Timberlake's latest album mixed with vintage "erotique" Serge Gainsbourg. The album is beautiful, melodic, and perfect. Easily one of my favorite albums EVER, and a mainstay in the music i listen to on a weekly basis. "L'Amour Et La Violence" is simply one of the best 'coked-out 80's songs' in history...which sounds awkward...so i'll just say it's an epic atmospheric gallant. I love this album so much that I would put it out in the US if i had the funds...finally Record Markers is going to do so (along with American Apparel) and i'm sure many people will be impressed. The production and songwriter are both impeccable and the album is a true wonder. I champion Sebastien Tellier no doubt and I could not speak higher of this album.

Genghis Tron - Board Up The House

"Hipster Metal" sans drummer. 3 nerds from Upstate NY whom kill it with a powerhouse of a metal album on Relapse. This album is a shredder and the title track is about Zombies which I can definitely relate to. When in the mood for something heavy, look past the goof-ball name and pop this bad-boy in. I have sung the praises of this band, and i'm going to toot my own horn. When the Faint were looking for opening acts for their tour, I said "GENGHIS TRON" and they listed...voila, 4 dates on the tour. I'm stoked on that, yeah...my own horn. The lead singer's name is Mookie too, which i like...reminds me of the goof-ball NY Met.

Torche - Meanderthal

Sticking on the 'heavy' vibe is Torche, on Hydrahead. I didn't really expect to like any 'heavy' albums this year, i've mostly been listening to shit, but wowsa...amazing stuff from these guys. Carlos said it best "it kinda sounds like Foo Fighters" but with more balls. This is a great album, melodic, forceful, and a great listen. This is what rock should be sounding like, this is what Queens of the Stone Age USED to sound like and should have progressed into. They suck shit now and Torche should take their place. Hell, I would sign them to a major label in a second. Develop these cats and you got a hit. I also hear they are amazing live.

okay, no more JPEGS of Album covers...here are some other hits with little or no info, do the research.

In Alphabetical Order:

Abe Vigoda - Skeleton
LA Tropical Punk boys on No Age's PPM label. I'm stoked for these young'ns they got a great album and are going to do some nice little things. Plus I signed them.

Armand Van Helden - Ghettoblaster (2007 yeah, but it rips)
"I Want Your Soul" is a deep house track that is just amazing. Armand is consistently a trailblazer. And he is now in the old-school NY hip-hop fashion vibe which should reinvigorate him.

Booka Shade - The Sun & Neon Light
Germany's greatest export right now, a great electro house act that ruled Coachella. A great album start to finish that flows and beats.

The Courteeners - St. Jude
Manchester's newest. It's cutesy, and the lead singer is named Liam and acts like a douche. I'm sold on it.

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Dig, Lazarus, Dig
Furious new album that shows Nick Cave is on a hot-streak for great albums. No nonsense, just great tunes. Really stoked to see him in Sept at the Hollywood Bowl for the first time.

No Age - Nouns
I give it to them, they are doing a good job and I like them. Go LA.

Titus Andronicus - The Airing Of Grievances
Camus referencing post-hardcore...of course i'll love it. This album is a bleeder and only works when you listen from the beginning to the end.

Yelle - Pop-Up
A) French B) Electro C) The best thing I saw at Coachella...very kitschy and a winner. It's just "cute" okay, it works.

Yeasayer - All Hour Cymbals
Great atmospheric record. Toured with MGMT and did a good job. A fun listen.

OKAY, now old shit that I 'discovered' recently

Bryan Ferry - Boys and Girls (1985)
Post "Avalon" solo record that is amazing. Very 80's, great synth layers and some really good songs.

Kate Bush - Hounds Of Love (1985)
Great, great, great album. "Running Up That Hill" is an amazing pop song. David Gilmour found her...even better. Title track still relevant today as it has been covered by Mystery Jets and others. Great 'period-piece' album.

Jacques Brel
French singer. Chansons cest magnifique. Reminds me of the best trip of my life, Paris with Jen over Christmas '07. Very nice.

"Baker Street" song - Gerry Rafferty (1978)
Easily still one of the best riffs ever, as played by a saxophone. Just so good. This song is going to play at my wedding. Probably right after "Heaven" by Bryan Adams. I didn't discover this recently, but I try and listen to it as often as possible and I love talking about it.

I am going to post more, I swear. Oh my 1 valued reader. I got into a Yelp War...it was sweet. I am playing soccer again, yay. Manchester City is back in the news with a new coach and some summer signing extravaganzas. Important shit going down. Let's talk. "Be Kind Rewind" best movie of 2008.

Love,
Josh

2007

2007-12-31T23:59:00.000-08:00

2008, right around the corner. Every year I put together a list of my favorites from the year and some thoughts. Here it is for 2007. All in all I do not think this was a good year for music, especially on the business side. Love to all.

1 Grinderman – Grinderman
When making this list I didn’t expect this, but it’s true. I listened to this album the most in 2007 and I loved it. Albums that came out in 2007 had a lot of frills and bells and whistles it seems. With an industry failing a lot of eyes are on artists creative outputs and there is tons of scrutiny and some hesitation from the creator. In true greatness, this album just kills! The production by Nick Launay is flawless and Nick Cave made an album that is simple, direct, and timeless. This album makes your head bob, your teeth clench, and plants your feet. I reviewed it for defunct Little Radio here, please do read up: http://littleradio.com/feeds/reviews/view/707

2 Pantha Du Prince – This Bliss
Minimal Techno sounds aggravating, but it’s not. Despite the horrible name of the artist, this album is a great electronic release that is really easy to listen to. It came out of left field for me (Germany), I read a few great reviews, picked up the album and was simply amazed. An album for all occasions with great use of strings and never too abrasive. Trust me, I’m not just embracing it because it is obscure.

3 The Field – From Here We Go Sublime
Same thing goes for the Field as #2, yet The Field received a barrage of amazing press from the get go (most likely due to it’s release on Kompakt). It’s a great minimal album. Stayed in my car’s single-disc CD player for a few months without any complaints as the album flows into itself quite nicely (Note: My Commute Is 5 minutes to work).

4 I’m Not There (Soundtrack)
I love Bob Dylan, nothing beats Bob Dylan for me. So I was hesitant when I got this record because its covers of an artist that is perfect as is. The result, a really great double album. Calexico who I really enjoy are heavily involved in this album as a backing band and the result is wonderful. What I also liked is that most of the songs are lesser known and from a period in which Bob was not too critically acclaimed, yet they are great songs. The standouts are “Dark Eyes” (Iron & Wine/Calexico), “Senor” (Willie Nelson/Calexico), “The Man In The Long Black Coat” (Mark Lanegan), and “Ballad Of A Thin Man” (Stephen Malkmus).

5 El-P – I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead
Wow, I never expected I would dig this. El-P went balls out on this record and enlisted some heavy hitters (Trent Reznor, Mars Volta, Cat Power) to deliver a cornucopia of brutal hits. The album came out right at the beginning of 2007 but held strong all the way. I have the pleasure of working with El-P which you would think would cloud my judgement but the truth is the only stuff of his I really enjoyed before this was his instrumental album. There are some amazing tunes on this album and it deserves praise.

6 Beirut – The Flying Club Cup
Last year, as many others, I fell in love with the sounds of Beirut. The Balkan themed tunes are great and whenever I am flying I decide to put on “Gulag Orkestar.” This album came out on the first day of 2 that I saw them play in Los Angeles and it is good. Not as good as the debut but still strong and luckily still similar. I hope Beirut put out one album a year, that would be nice.

7 Underworld – Oblivion With Bells
When I first heard “Crocodile” (the first single) I loved it but didn’t think the album as whole would hold up. I was wrong, Underworld delivered, this album is a lot of fun and has some great Eno-esque soundscapes placed in there which I love. Yet it still has the driving Underworld signature bump.

8 Justice - Cross
The long awaited debut lived up the MP3’s I downloaded one by one that made up the debut album…wait a minute. I can’t believe this turned into a “thing” I just like that its heavy on the bass and makes you dance. I bought the album the day it came out at Starbucks, that basically sums it up.

9 Dizzee Rascal – Maths & English
I’m not a big hip-hop dude but this album is pretty fierce. I have always liked Dizzee Rascal and this album was solely an import which is just a shame. The album has a great tempo to it and lyrically it’s a step from his past works. Defintely a banger!

10 Bang Gang – Something Wrong
Technically this album was out in 2003, but unveiled in America/UK in 2007. It’s from Iceland and features guest vocalists galore that make up a really great atmospheric mellow pop record. I really liked it and the songs stay with you.

11 The Thrills - Teenager
I took a chance on this album and was pleasantly surprised to the point that I went back and re-bought their previous 2 records (which I had sold)! It’s an honest record which complements a band that has built a nice repertoire of feel good mellow rock albums. A bonus was seeing them at Club NME/Spaceland with good friends and Boddington’s flowing.

12 Jaymay – Autumn Fallin’
Love Jaymay. I have the pleasure of working with her and since she moved to London and signed to Heavenly I didn’t see her much. I was quite happy to get her record in the mail and it was exactly what everybody was hoping for. Dylan-esque songwriting that is honest and brutal. A huge star for the future and just amazing album, the UK is already praising it.

13 Bjork – Volta
On a scale of Bjork fans, I’m far from those fanatic (I know at least 3), but I celebrate the catalog and enjoy her artistry. I like this album a lot, probably because I was lucky enough to score tickets to see her at the Apollo in Harlem (smaller than your local movie theatre) before Coachella and got an advance prior. Live she was great, I really was transfixed on the use of the Lemur mixer and had a great time.

14 Marcus Intalex – FabricLive 35
I’m really glad I am a member of the Fabric First Club, even though I live far from London and have only been to the club once. Reason being is I get Cd’s in the mail monthly from people I have usually never heard of and 1 out of every 5 is great. Marcus Intalex put out an minimal drum ‘n’ bass record, the only drum ‘n’ bass record I have ever liked, and many of my friends who I played the CD for agreed. I was very happy to see that on a recent visit to the Urbis museum in Manchester, UK there was a small installation on Drum ‘N’ Bass and Jungle and it featured a video segment highlighting this FabricLive album and its importance to the genre.

15 Spank Rock – FabricLive 33
To add to my Fabric First input in selection #14, an artist like Spank Rock is a reason I get FabricLive/Fabric CD’s monthly. Although not a huge fan of the group, I know their caliber and this album perfectly comprises some great dance tunes of the year. With cuts from Zongamin, Simian Mobile Disco (Tangerine Dream “Risky Business” Re-Edit), and Uffie among others it was a great party mix.

16 Mark Ronson - Version
I have followed Ronson for a while and really liked the tunes I was hearing off this album as they slowly leaked. It’s a good, fun album, and the LA show was great because of all the nice guest appearances. This year I also experienced Ronson’s club, YoYo in NY and London, met his crew, and had a blast.

17 Peter, Bjorn, And John – Writer’s Block
I downloaded this album on iTunes when it came out in Sweden and really dug it. Then “Young Folks” took off and that was all she wrote. I recently revisited this album and its quite good, so it makes my list. On the live end though they are boring sadly.

18 Eagles – Long Road Out Of Eden
Ok, here it is. I’m an Eagles fan, fuck you. I’m pissed they made me go to Wal-Mart though, but it’s cool, I burned this record for all my friends.

19 Andrew Bird – Armchair Apocrypha
I got this album on a whim after hearing rumblings of its greatness and its quite nice. I’m usually not into solo artist dudes, and that should say something about this album. An interesting work and the first I have heard from Mr. Bird.

20 BARR - Summary
By far the weirdest album I heard all year, and probably ever. Almost painful spoken word, but really off the wall. “The Song Is The Single” is a great song, and just really satirically hilarious. I enjoyed playing this album for Carlos and blowing his mind that someone would do this. It’s laughable.

Honorable Mentions sorta:
No Age – Weirdo Rippers Everybody was ALL about this, but the album itself is not that good amazing song-wise….c’mon be honest. What I do give them is that they are the fore-fathers of an LA scene that is finally amongst us. Bands like Abe Vigoda and HEALTH exist now and it’s nice to have creativity close to home.

Alaska In Winter – Dance Party In The Balkans Easily one of the best live shows I saw all year in which Brandon (the only member of the band) filmed himself playing all the parts and added some comic relief as well. Very Beirut (they are buddies) and an album that is finally getting some of the credit it deserves.

Burial – “Archangel” from Untrue Hell of a tune, that is all. The album doesn’t come close to how good this song is.

The Prayers – God Save The Prayers EP Some obvious bias as I work very closely with these guys but I really see them as amazingly talented and had some wonderful times with them this year. Meeting Mark E Smith with them, going to a Man City game, and really enjoying ourselves, can’t beat that.

LIVE
So like every year I go to many live shows. Most blend into the mid-range level and rarely am I blown away because I see so many bands. I do find it quite important to note when I am blown away though, and that happened a few times this year. Most recently, Jen and I flew to London for vacation and were ecstatic to learn that The Verve was going to be playing the day we landed on their reunion mini-tour. We got tickets in the pre-sale and were stoked. I have to admit though, although I have all 3 Verve albums, I never found myself listening to them that often and couldn’t remember the songs (even though I liked them when I listened to them). Add the fact that we basically landed after an 11 hour flight and went to the O2 Arena, I was pretty woozy. But, when the Verve took the stage and started playing I was blown away. Any jet-lag or travel fatigue was gone and they were amazing. Since then (Dec 13th) I cannot get their great songs out of my head and now know them! I’m looking forward to seeing them at Coachella ’08 (fingers crossed).
A show that took me by surprise was Morrissey at the Hollywood Bowl on June 8th. I have seen Morrissey plenty of times over the last few years and only got tickets for this because Jen wanted to go and it was around our birthdays. I wasn’t really excited or anything when we went, I was expecting to hear some songs I liked and that be that. I was wrong, the feeling at the Bowl was electric. The songs he played were amazing and the sound was impeccable. Loud, pitch perfect, and truly amazing. I was intrigued from the first song to the last and that shows me it’s an amazing show.
Lastly, I want to comment on a show I saw by chance at SXSW that took the cake. SXSW ’07 was grueling for me, and quite uneventful by the time it was over. During my running around, I had to go check on the SPIN party at Stubb’s one of the days to make sure my companies banner and swag was out and visible, etc. I walked in to a humming, powerful driving set by the band MEW. From that moment on, I was hooked. I stopped and watched as much of the set as I could and the sound was perfect. I never cared much for the band, I had heard a few tunes and wasn’t into it, but after seeing them live I realized I was missing out. Shortly after SXSW I picked up their record and fell in love all over again. Easily the best sounding live act I saw in ’07 and it was all by chance.

BUMMERS
She Wants Revenge Sophmore Slump? I worked on the first record and spent many a time with Justin Warfield and basically kept my opinion of him to myself, well it’s been long enough. The guy is a sham, a fake, a poser, an ass, and way too cocky. I feel bad for Adam 12, he is nice. Their second album sucks and their careers are most likely over, again.

UNKLE I have always been a huge U.N.K.L.E. supporter, and sadly I was really not into their latest album. I was a fan of “Never, Never Land” which most people wrote off as mediocre as it was missing DJ Shadow. This album, is just shit, plain and simple. All the songs are middle of the road and dismal at that. Too bad too, I really wanted to like it.

The Stooges – The Weirdness Love the Stooges but this record sucks.

Managers I work in the music industry and the worst thing this year were all the shitty managers who don’t know a damn thing and have ego’s bigger than anybody. People who just don’t think at all and fuck up so much. Total bummer, hopefully in ’08 all these folks get fired once their respective artists realized how bad they are. Note, if you are a manager and you are reading this well then you are a friend of mine and a GOOD manager.

Geffen Records Wow, what a bummer, in early December Interscope/Universal finally pulled the trigger and laid off what must be 80% of the company. A company I used to work at. The only good thing about it was that most of the “cool” people knew it was coming and are moving on to better things, and the majority of the asshole’s (Ron’s Kids) got let go as well screaming and crying. Talk about ruining a company Mr. Fair, the Klaxons and watered down pop that the kids won’t even swallow, what a bummer. I would say stick to producing but that “touch” seems to have departed as well. Some people belong in studios, others have the charisma, intelligence, and ability to grow a company…obviously, you are lacking some needed qualities.

God Save The Prayers

2007-11-01T17:27:00.000-07:00

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So I Went To The UK....

2007-10-30T14:39:00.000-07:00

...Just got back actually, and you know when something crashes from a great height and hits the ground it bounces up again before bottoming out on the ground. Well the "bounce" was yesterday, and after an 11 and a half hour flight, today I feel like shit. So I'm just going to post pictures and tell the story.

I started off in Manchester, landed after NY for CMJ. Went to the hotel, slept for a few hours then myself and my co-worker/amazing friend Jamie met up with the Prayers boys (www.myspace.com/thefuckingprayers). Jamie and I are their parents basically. Here is a photo of the group:

Mind you, this is around 4am, and everybody is kinda trashed. Top Deck: Brandon, Joel, Charles, and Andrew. Bottom Deck: Jamie. Setting: Piccadilly Square.

After City won 1-0 over Birmingham we had a nice dinner to celebrate Charles' birthday then we returned to the Midland Hotel to regroup. 3 of the Prayers friends came up from Scunthorpe and we ended up drinking in the 2nd floor lobby for a good 3 hours. After getting booted from the lobby we decided to get more beer and continue on. Mind you, Jamie and myself were pretty tired and pretty sober, but remember it's Chuck's birthday. We were traveling in a pack of nine when the drunkest of the bunch Brandon made friends with some locals and they invited us to a house party outside of Manchester. Great idea, so 9 of us boarded the bus (thanks to my corraling) and we headed out towards Moss Side (THE GHETTO). First house party was a bust, upon coming in (beers in hand!?!?) some local kids wanted to beat the shit out of us. It was a little flat and they had a fuckin techno DJ with 4 turntables (CD) set up...bonkers. So there was ANOTHER house party down the road and 15 minutes later we were there. This party was far better, here is the crowd:

University Students dancing around. There was also a crazy basement, and a backyard...the house was fucking trashed.

So we rolled in about 6am, that was day 1. Happy Birthday Chuck.

The second day featured The Prayers actually playing a gig at South. We had slept in most of the day and just got some food then went to the venue for the show. It was great, they played well it was a nice touch. After that we went to the famous Roadhouse in Manchester for an ITC show, but we were late and shit had ended 2 hours ago...whoops. The band met a guy who was part of the old Man United firm, had trained with Ricky Hatton, and was ABSOLUTELY FUCKING HAMMERED. We called him Gary i think. He threw a "you know what" through a "you know what's" "you know what"....we'll just leave it at that. He passed out and went nuts and we stumbled home smashed and took this picture in the park of the Prayers:

End Day 2, like 5am...so not my style

The next day we woke up late (go figure) and Jamie and I split up from the Prayers boys (as they had to soundcheck) and we headed to easily my most favorite museum on the planet, The Urbis. They had an exhibition all about the Hacienda dedicated to the late Tony Wilson which is amazing. We hit the gift shop like a bastard and I picked up some stuff at Virgin, including MOST IMPORTANTLY UK books about soccer that you can't get in the US (because no one cares)! Then we met up with the boys at Curry Mile in Souf Manchester. The show was very very very special for one reason, which I will come to in a minute, but here is the Prayers set photos.

The promoter of the show was a nice guy, but shit was fucked, there were 30 bands on the bill, no fucking backline (which the prayers needed), and no organization. We showed up early and just chilled. Chuck and I got a pizza at a Kebab place...not bad, but there was definitely some anti-white remarks! YES! So I was told to put someone on the list by the name of Mark E Smith, I said...yeah whatever...so full of it. 30 minutes later, i look outside and who do I see? MARK E SMITH. I posted about him a few blogs ago...serious...NUTSO! I hit up my peeps Schmalz and Jen to spread the news, it was remarkable. Here is a pic to prove it:

Now the night was full of Mark E Smith moments that I am not spreading or typing up so if you want to no hit me up otherwise I state this. 1) He was not one bit like I thought he would be. He was really really cool, bought beers all night, and it was really nice. 2) He really liked The Prayers and called them "Brilliant." All the other bands paid homage to the Prayers too who were easily a huge step above the rest. 3) Mark was so cool that he came back into the city centre with us and hung at the hotel until early in the morning, fucking mega. 4) Mark and I spoke about The Fall, Henry Rollins, Tony Wilson, Joy Division, the whole lot....and what he had to say was pretty amazing.

Me and Mark E at a Sci-Fi bar he likes. Easily a highlight in my wee life.

The next day we woke up and went to London, but I will have to save all that info for another post....but here are the pics from London:

Keys To London: Runnin with the Ronson camp at YoYo London with Sean Lennon, Daniel Merriweather, Poppy LaFond, and LaCrate. K-West Bar for 20 dollar Vodka Tonics. A Very Famous Artist, Tim Burgess in Camden, Bumping into Geri Haliwell (Spice Girls), Lots of Shoreditch/Hoxton nonsense, and drinking way more than I ever have.

The Science Of A Day Off

2007-10-08T10:16:00.000-07:00

Columbus Day...who'd a thunk it. People on the west coast don't give a shit, but because my company's owners are in NY, we get the day off. I had no idea, until I heard last week so of course, i'm illy prepared. Here is my plan of events for the day.

Starting Off:
-Woke up, drove Jen to work as I promised because she stayed up late to watch "Hill Street Blues." Achieved: Breakfast/Coffee
-Next up is finishing "City Of Industry" Staring Harvey Keitel and Stephen Dorff as I tivo'd this last night and have never seen it. Obviously never seen it, and it's main appeal is that the "City Of Industry" is a shithole directly east of LA (like inches) and i like "old" movies. 1997 is now considered "old." The film is now grainey! Even 10 years ago crime movies could still have that "far-fetched" aspect in it. These days with Law & Order, CSI, 2020, Forensic Files, and all that hoopla, you gotta be "real" with everything. (As I write, the plot is getting juicy)

Mid-Day (Planned):
-Jiffy Lube: Oil Change, Washer Fluid, etc. This could be anywhere from an hour to 2 hours so I will go to the park across the street (newly "rennovated" Virginia Park and read my book, The Plague by Albert Camus. This park is great because it's new, so its very very flat with no structures to hide behind so dudes can't diddle kids.
-Lunch, probably mexican somewhere quick. Then I gotta stop by Ralph's.

Latter Day:
-Perhaps another movie? I have a full stock of netflix at home, could happen!
-Nap? Still sick, fighting the cold!
-Dinner with Jen and Carlos before...
-Morrissey at the Palladium is the big one. Still sick though, so I hope I can shake this cold and enjoy the show.

Soundtrack for the day:
Calla wiki. I really like Calla, I first heard them when I lived in NY and they released the amazing "Televise" on Arena Rock Recording Co which featured one of the best songs I have heard in my life, "Strangler." Their latest album "Strength In Numbers" I originally shunned because I really didn't like it at first listen. Now i'm working today, to like this album if possible. I loved their 4th release "Collisions" (2005) and it was one of my favorite albums of the year.

That is my day, tranquil and petite, like I like it. Despite popular belief, my job DOES stress me out, so it's nice to take a quiet day by myself.

Summer to Fall

2007-09-30T23:29:00.000-07:00

So many bloggers...so little time. I would love to be a professional journalist...like Marcello in "La Dolce Vita." But alas, a real job beckons so I will have to put that on the back burner.

I'm all about this right now:
-Bryan Adams: Playing this Thursday in town, going to try and make it, the catalog is amazing
-the UK (for so many reasons):
1) Upcoming Trip with The Prayers myspace
2) That trips potential offerings
3) pre-Xmas trip with Jennifer
4) The general love of the place
-Books from French Authors
-MCFC's miraculous run
-Netflix
-Colder Weather
-Turzi (a musical group)
-ING Direct / Orange Savings

I'm not into this right now:
-Alan McGee's tude: Still so fuckin hip...sheesh
-CMJ: really not what it was, or what it should be
-my internet connection
-loud neighbors
-hairballs
-meaningless blogposts (like this one)

It's Hot: THE TUSS

2007-09-05T15:20:00.001-07:00

Nothing like glitchy electronica! I'm all about The Tuss right now. Rumors reveal that The Tuss is 95% likely to be the Aphex Twin. Brilliant, I love me some Richard D James and anything associated with the man. One of the few artists I really really really want to see live and have never seen.

So the wikipedia genie seems to reveal that The Tuss (wiki) is really the Aphex Twin due to the use of the Yamaha GX1 (wiki) which was originally debuted in 1973 and there are only 10 of them in the world, costing $60,000 each (if you can find one for sale). Not to mention the Yamaha is a few hundred pounds. Get your glitch on, via Rephlex Records (Aphex's very own label) with the "Rushup Edge" CD/Vinyl.

Oh No

2007-08-17T18:14:00.000-07:00

50 Cent, what happened? Who are you? I remember you coming into the Interscope offices all happy and nice and shit. You and my girl shared the love of Queens New York, and it was so nice that you wanted to learn about Soundscan and BDS. Dude, you have CRED! So what you talked to the cops and was on Oprah, no need to go nuts, when you sell millions of records you lose all cred and become a victim of society. Just chill out a bit and stay focused.

So this was news to me. Dissing my old boss (indirect obviously), Jimmy Iovine. Not too crazy because A) Jimmy does care and B) Jimmy won't kill you, he will just stop releasing your albums and keep you under contract and make sure nobody signs you once you are dropped and you can go hang out with Can-I-Bus. He has Robin Thicke now, he doesn't need you. And just like Eminem's D-12, your G-Unit doesn't sell too well and they can't seem to keep themselves out of jail, shit, destined to be dropped anyway.

Here is a link from Rawkus from somebody else with an MP3 of "South Side" 50 Cent feat. Tony Yayo (Irv Gotti and Jimmy Iovine dis). Good luck with your career buddy!

http://www.rawkus.com/content/?p=1136 or click here

Why would I not blog for a few weeks then blog this...what the fuck, i'm bummed on 50 and i dont even like rap.

So It Goes...

2007-08-13T18:29:00.000-07:00

Tony Wilson passed away last week, and I barely had time to let it soak in as I was traveling for work. He was easily one of the most inspirational people in my business, and a person who's hand I always wanted to shake but never did (although being in his presence twice). His business model favored creativity over profit, something easily considered unacceptable today, and at the time he did it. The first pressing on the #1 selling 12 inch of all time, New Order's "Blue Monday" had such expensive packaging that his Factory Records lost money every copy they sold. Where is a man like this today, in a business that is almost entirely comitted to turning a profit whatever the cost. Tony Wilson made art, and was someone I strived to model myself after. Joy Division/New Order, Happy Mondays, Durruti Column, OMD, and so many more all go their start with Tony Wilson at the helm. Factory Records, originally with a 1 page contract written in blood and a numerical release schedule has a catalog that shapes music today. I visit Manchester because of Tony Wilson's love and passion for the North and it's music.

I miss Tony Wilson already, and I long to put on a New Order record and just say "Thank You".

The Independent has an obituary here.

My Crush...

2007-07-31T00:33:00.000-07:00

I am a movie guy, I will always sit down and watch a movie if it grabs me, even if it's dumb. For the longest time I would get interested in about 85% of the comedies out there (excluding childrens ones), and any movie somebody said was good, I would check it out. And that is where my problem began, I kept watching and renting dumb movies. What a bummer.

As I like foreign films a lot and the films that come to the indie movie houses around Santa Monica, I always feel like i'm playing eternal catch-up. So many good movies that are here today, then gone tomorrow. That is the gift of netflix and the fact that the turnaround from arthouse to dvd is quite quick. I have seen some lovely indie films locally as of recent like The Lives Of Others (wiki) and Who Killed The Electric Car? to name a few.

My search for good movies landed me on the Criterion Collection web page which made me very happy. Restoring classic arthouse foreign films is a great thing, and the collection includes some very important films. One of my favorite films (which I have blogged about) is For All Mankind about the NASA missions to the moon. Recently I blogged about The Battle Of Algiers another great Criterion Collection film. My netflix has been bustling with foreign gems like Port Of Shadows, Fritz Lang's M, and Army Of Shadows.

Absolutely amazing stuff, I highly recommend researching the collection and renting a few whose synobsis you find interesting, you won't be let down.

Movie: Electroma

2007-07-30T22:59:00.000-07:00

Like 18k other hooligans, I went to go see Daft Punk perform at the LA Sports Arena recently. It was a great turnout for a great French group that I consider "Electronica for Dummies." After the show I was conversing with my uber daft punk fan friend Cesar who remarked, "I can burn you the "Electroma" dvd if you'd like, I hated it." At first I was like yeah whatever, but then I thought, oh why not, free is free isn't it. A few days later I decided to pop in the movie as I was still vibing off a great show and day (saw Beckham's premier). I knew the movie was going to be slow, and after Interstella 5555 which I thought was a cool 2 hour music video I wasn't expecting to be wowed.

On the contrary, I was wowed. In fact, super wowed. This film is a truly love it or hate it kind of thing, but as I am an artsy movie buff I found it quite interesting. I'd say it's a mix of Kubrick and The Man Who Fell To Earth (which starred David Bowie). As the movie didn't really wow many people and ended up on the midnight circuit in Paris of all places I'm sure the general public doesn't have a clue about this jig. Basically you have 2 robots in a place that is like earth in all ways except everybody are robots. The 2 main characters happen to have the outfits of Daft Punk's stage persona, go figure. They strive to be Human, and for an hour and a half they do that, and that is it. There is absolutely NO DIALOGUE in this film, and the determining factor of emotion is music. Now that is why I love this film, the music supervision is flawless to the T and not one piece of Daft Punk music is used. Brian Eno, Sebastian Tellier, Curtis Mayfield, Chopin, Todd Rungren, and more make up this fascinating soundtrack that by all means sets the tone of the whole movie.

The film was shot in 11 days in Independence, CA a beautifully barren town and desert base of the Sierra Nevadas, 90 miles south of Mammoth. The scenic beauty adds a lot depth to an otherwise easily misinterpretted film. Another realization one must make before viewing this film is that it is slow, scenes drag on for many minutes, the opening scene is 7 minutes of basic driving through the desert, and at the end of the movie things are at a crawl. Daft Punk wanted to make a film their way and by now they should have that right. I commend them for doing what they have done and really not caring about the outcome or critic's point of view. It was the perfect time for me to see this movie, mood and setting were on point, and that lends a lot to my feelings about it. What could essentially be 9 or 10 music video's put together wonderfully tells a simple story of the constant sorrow associated with the stuggle of being like everybody else. The simplicity of the film is a breath of fresh air as so many movies today depend on bad jokes, bad action, bad storylines, and bad stories. Why not embrace a calming experience like "Electroma"?

"Electroma" is out on Vice Records in September (total bummer, piss poor label). For a zipped file of the soundtrack head over here, it's really worth it, bravo to the music supervisor. The last thing I can say is in a world in which we are handfed most of our entertainment (Perez Hilton, TMZ, Transformers) it's nice to see a pair of artists make a film that completely disregards what is expected of entertainment.

Bear Grylls: My Hero

2007-07-26T10:35:00.000-07:00

Stop Hating On Bear!

Bear Grylls resume is outstanding. British Special Forces puts him in the top percentile of the world of elite human machismos. Climbing Mt. Everest (the youngest englishman), and crossing the frozen sea of the Atlantic puts him in a class of survivalism that only a handful have obtained. So now this controversy is uncovered in which people are stating that on the popular show "Man Vs. Wild" Bear is getting help from consultants and not really sleeping in animal carcasses. People are claiming that this reality TV is not really reality. Wait...go figure...TV not realistic?

Reality itself, is not interesting for 99% of the population. Therefore people have seemed to enjoy watching shows about people whose reality seems to be wild and crazy and more interesting than theirs. The problem with that is the TV producers are spending a lot of money following around a schmo for days and days only to find them grocery shopping or watching TV or whatever. So for the show to continue on, REALITY must be forced and tweaked. These situations usually revolve around a conflict, an altercation, or acts of stupidity. You know you wouldn't watch if it was boring.

So Bear Grylls allegedly doesn't sleep the whole night in a freezing snow cave, or his raft he can't complete by himself. Okay, not cool, but I know from watching the show, that it is TV! Of course there is a "Local Survival Expert" or whatever credited, because Bear isn't going to know about Native American survival techniques without sitting down with somebody from the area and learning it. I love the show "Man Vs. Wild" it is my favorite show on television, why, because it is something that interests me and something I grew up doing on a way lesser scale. I am an Eagle Scout and I was in the Boy Scouts for many years of my early life. I went camping once a month and the most important lessons ("merit badges") I learned from the program was Emergency Preparedness, First Aid, and Wilderness Survival. In a few instances I have used those First Aid techniques in car accidents and mini "disasters" or whatever. I take it all very personally because saving peoples lives is an amazing thing, and there are many situations where a person can do so. Bear Grylls is my hero because he films situations in which the normal person would die or be scared shitless and he walks you through the steps towards making it out alive. He teaches survival techniques on TV and that is a hell of a lot better than watching young girls get drunk and make out like most reality TV. Most "stars" of reality TV are embarrassed (you know you have watched the Real World reunions and they always say that). This is noble television, and I always knew that there is definitely some fudging going on because Bear has an unidentified camera crew and it's REALITY TV.

I have worked in music since I was 15 1/2 years old in which I have truly gone from innocence to experience. On occasions through my career I have seen payola take place, interns forging stars autographs, discussions about the use of auto-tune on a record, and many more "behind the scenes" bullshit that the consumer and common man would shun. It is also such common knowledge of the use of "Ghost Writers" that it has become completely acceptable, nobility is out the fucking window at the first hint in the Entertainment Industry. A "Ghost Writer" is employed when a songwriter or producer has gotten to the point of fame where he is too lazy/lost his touch and hires up and coming creative songwriters/producers to write his shit for him to put his name on. This is never mentioned in articles or liner notes, but it happens with almost all mega-stars and nobody bats a lash. Even now a days due to some discovery or partial morality these ghost writers get a small percentage of the hit songs they wrote but the press still hails the big name attached to it. The exact same filthy techniques are employed in all television, especially reality tv!

What the "bewildered herd" doesn't know, doesn't hurt them. The NY Post who is infamous for slander and uncovering bullshit about anything of course goes to town on this. In my mind Bear has earned enough respect through his unfilmed acts of survival and human drama to be able to film a show in which things are setup and facts are withheld, it's called television. I dont know about you, but when I saw Bear drink his own piss, bite the head off a snake in which he eats, and eat a fish that came straight out of a river raw I squirmed. That type of TV is good TV because in that situation who knows what we would do to survive. It's not like he doesn't show himself skinning a dead animal for it's hide so he doesn't freeze, there is no stunt double around. Along with that "drama" I have also seen a man explain how to use the sun, moss, and small icicles as a compass which uncovers one of the most important parts of survival, finding your direction a la North, South, East and West. Finding a water source in the desert, building a snowcave (which is basically the only way to survive when in a barren snowy region), or the proper feet first method when you are in the rapids without a boat/canoe/raft is all very useful information. My Boy Scout experience has touched on these things and I'm glad that the masses enjoy watching this stuff and hopefully learning a bit. Who knew all snakes are edible as long as you don't eat the guts or head?!?! I will also state that not all boy scouts are angels. I am a very proud Eagle Scout and I'll admit I spent many nights out in the wilderness drinking beers with fellow boy scouts at an early age (along with other contraband). Oh the shock, oh the horror!

The fact of the matter is that all TV is manufactured in the "Wizard of Oz" type way. Behind the scenes a lot of bullshit goes down and until recent years it was all unknown to the general public. "The Day of the Locust" depicted true Hollywood in 1939 and it was a huge success because people were intrigued that those involved in amazing movies were treated like shit, poor, and miserable. Entertainment is only entertaining if you are intrigued and if it's something you dont know much about. The public's desire for dramatic entertainment has cost people their dignity. In my eyes Bear Grylls will always be a hero, and I don't mind if not every aspect of his show is him absolutely cut-off from human contact because in the one hour show the lessons learned and the entertainment value is much more valuable. A man like Bear Grylls has already earned his credibility, let the ghosts of entertainment do what they do so we can continue to enjoy "Man Vs. Wild."

You Know You Live In Los Angeles When...

2007-07-16T23:26:00.000-07:00

...Diamond Dallas Page teaches your yoga class.

Now my life is complete! I grew up watching WCW, I know what the Diamond Cutter is. The class was not easy, I was sweating like a dog and dang I'm sore tonight. It's not bogus, and the stretches were very nice. Check out his site, www.yrgworkout.com aka Yoga for Regular Guys/Gals. Looking forward to going again...next time Radio Perfik is cancelled.

Recent Development!

2007-07-12T10:34:00.000-07:00

Mark E Smith: Douchebag Extraordinaire

I wrote off Mark E Smith (wiki)/the Fall (wiki) a few years ago. Mark E is a douchebag, and I found the music too discombobulated for my taste....especially when on a classic Manchester kick. I got the old school "A Sides" album but it never really grabbed me. Finally I tried again and bought "50,000 Fall Fans Can't Be Wrong: 39 Golden Greats" and sat on that for a bit. A few weeks back I was feeling a little giddy so I found the double album in my office and popped it on. For some reason it stuck with me, and I am now really getting into it. I'm discombobulated and weird...so it's perfect. Looking forward to the next time the Fall plays the Knitting Factory (yearly I believe) as I will definitely attend.

Here are two of the newer tracks on the "...Greats" album, who'd a think a dude who has released like 90 albums would still pump it out.

The Fall - Green Eyed Loco-Man (2003)
The Fall - Crop-Dust (2001)

Bummer ALERT!

2007-07-11T11:08:00.000-07:00

BUMMER ALERT

"I bought the new Justice album at Starbucks!"

Yes, it is true, now that Tower Records has croaked, and Penny Lane is dead, there is only one music store on the Promenade....HEAR Music aka STARBUCKS. "Baristas" sell me music...yeah whatever. Tuesdays = new releases day, so I make my way over to HEAR every now and then to get up to speed.

Yesterday included the following:

Justice - (Cross): Had all the tracks already, whoops, but hey, gotta support my French Electro!

Gogol Bordello - Super Taranta!: You can't beat this, and ever since Eugene Hutz did an amazing job acting in "Everything Is Illuminated" I'm an even bigger fan. First listen shows a lot of promise, produced by Victor Van Vugt (Nick Cave, Billy Bragg).

Interpol - Our Love To Admire: See below...Artwork is okay...so minimal!

Ulrich Schnauss - Goodbye: First listen, this album has more vocals, still sleepy, it had a "Brian Eno" reference so of course I checked it out, but what I always find is that those references are rarely true!

Interpol: Our Love To Admire

2007-07-03T12:29:00.000-07:00

First Listen: I like the first track, heard that live twice. The album is a little "choppy" not sure I like this new take on their "direction." Pitchfork is going to take a dump on this album.

Second Listen: What happened to the poppy kind of tunes from the Antics album? I definitely dig the first song, but not into the strings/keys/last tunes.

Third Listen: Hey Carlos R, you love this album, weird? Wait, remember it took a few listens to get into the 2nd album which you didn't like at first?

Fourth Listen: Okay these little buggers are growing on me. I see some good reviews, it's growing. Perhaps Pitchfork is going to love it and not discredit them for signing to a major.

Fifth Listen: "Pioneer of the Falls" (Track 1) is the shit. "Scale" (Track 3) is a winner. I get it, it flows, still not too keen on the latter tracks. The single I skip, neither here nor there.

VERDICT: Interpol is a very good rock band. I had the pleasure of forcefully attending all of their shows after their debut was released as my A+R boss at the time was going after them and attendance was mandatory (on both coasts). I have seen them probably 15 times now...live show has definitely improved...they used to not move ya know. The lead singer will always be a dick, the drummer is amazing, very unique, and who doesn't like Carlos D or Daniel? Recent business developments have further intrigued my interest in the band, so yeah, I am a fan of "Our Love To Admire." It's a solemn album, no pep during the writing periods. The band has also grown "sonically" (horrible music term, but had to) with the addition of some pedals, strings, and more keys. I hope that isn't their Major Label/New major manager jerkfest that says hey you should do this because Interpol needs no guidance...just a stronger radio dept and urban marketing shit. So I give it an A-/89%/4.5/5 Stars/etc.

Go buy the album for fucks sake, I am even though I already have it. Go to Best Buy, first week it will be like $9.99 or some shit.

Question Posed: Why Aren't Pop Stars Cool Anymore?

2007-06-28T16:05:00.000-07:00

I work in Music, and I am constantly evaluating new and unknown artists. In this day and age I am a firm believer that Pop Music is the way to go. It still sells, people like it hence the name popular, and it's nice on the ears.

Frank Sinatra (very good wiki) is credited for being the founder of contemporary pop music. Who doesn't know Sinatra? I have recently delved into the many facets of Sinatra's career and let me tell you it doesn't let you down. His early days, his acting, his Vegas stint, and the "September of his Years," all is pretty top.

So I pose the question, what happened to cool and respectable Pop artists?

I'm not saying that Michael Buble or John Mayer aren't talented, I'm just saying they are not cool....at all. Sinatra was pure class, he was talented and he appealed to everbody. He was a ladies man, dudes wanted to bro down with him, and everbody enjoyed his songs. What more can you ask for? Not Much! The pop artists of today only appeal to certain crowds and are hated by others. They sell some records, but not to the potential of an artist the could replicate Sinatra's appeal. Regardless of what music you like, if you hear somebody sing with a phenominal voice, you are impressed. That is the key, recognizing talent is the most important part, the image and style is what defines the rest. Sinatra had wit, style, and an image that will forever remain intact.

The one thing I want to find in my career, the next Sinatra.

100th Post

2007-06-26T11:50:00.000-07:00

Yes, it is true, the big 100. Can't believe I made it that far, I remember being just a wee blog racking up a few posts a week dreaming of stardom.....wait, I barely blog, but hey 100!

To celebrate I will leave you with some inspiration:

"It's Better To Fail In Originality, Than Succeed In Imitation."
-Herman Melville

My "NOT so HOT" List

2007-06-23T11:05:00.000-07:00

-Thierry Henry to Barca: WTF? No, WHAT THE FUCK?!?!? Not only the best Arsenal player, one of the best EPL players of the last decade! To Barcelona? The SPL is boring, EPL is top tier. Now Aresenal is SCREWED. In 99 (i think) they didn't lose a game, now they are going to lose Wenger and Cesc in the next few weeks and that is that. Ashburton Grove cost them way too much money and so now they need to sell off players to make up for it, bad move. NOT HOT.

-HBO: No Sopranos so what do you got? John From Cleveland, I don't give a shit. Deadwood BORING. Big Love, good but not really feeling it. Entourage, great but getting kind of far fetched now. Bury My Heart At Torn Miniscus, yeah not feeling it (Anna Paquin went to a rival high school of mine and everybody said she was a stuck up bitch). What the hell else does HBO have? Once I get DirecTv HBO is gone, I dont give two shits.

-NO AGE Pitchfork Review/"Hype": PitchforkMedia gave LA Noise Outfit NO AGE's "Weirdo Rippers" an 8.0 and Best New Music. Are you kidding me. I have the album, its sludge, barely songs, sounds like it was recorded at My Asshole Studios and mixed by a deaf guy. Now, I'm not hating too hard because this is the kind of shit I dig (as in listen to it a few times in a span of 3 weeks and then discard yet recommend), but NOBODY is going to like this album who isn't an esoteric music nerd like myself. Pitchfork Media is to The Truth as Jeffrey Dahmer is to a good neighbor.

-NME Magazine: I subscribed for years when I was younger, and recently re-subscribed for SESAC purposes. This magazine suckkkkkks. It's all the same shitty bands with horrible writing, bad reviews and really not much to check out except the ads in the back for shows/festivals. I'll read it every week, but it takes a few tries.

-My Love MAN CITY: We are really not doing too well right now. New takeover by an exiled Thai Prime Minister who has been asked to return to Thailand to face jail time for Human Rights Violations! Distin walks after contract expires, Barton sold as he is a step away from jail, and now Sven Goran "England Hates Me Because I Can't Coach A National Team" Erikkson to take the hot seat? Kill me please, relegation anyone? There better be some Strikers coming in and some Attacking Midfielders because we haven't signed anybody yet and I'm getting really nervous. Get rid of Corradi, keep Samaras and Vassell. Do not lose Micah Richards, he is the key to the future. I finally pledged all my faith to an EPL team last year and now they are in the shitter, beautiful.

Other Tidbits From A Hater:
-My Shitty Loud Neighbors
-Books over 300 pages long (especially with small print)
-Douchebags in Vegas (basically 80% of the crowd)
-Top Deck at Dodger Stadium For A Dodger Game (I was pretty sure I was going to fall off, steep and old)
-Jason Schmidt of the Dodgers (41 Million for 1 win this year and now he's out for the season...FUCK YOU...More Dodger bad luck with players that used to be good then came to LA..and I don't even care about the Dodgers)

On The Brighter Side...
-Paul Alrgen Books (exactly what I needed right now)
-Pantha Du Prince - This Bliss (album) Once you get past the shitty name, the album is really hot, great minimal techno love
-Jello Biafra Spoken Word Albums (Everytime I'm at Amoeba I check for used Jello Spoken Word and I hit the jackpot this time. 3 Different Albums, 8 discs in all of glorius political angst)
-1 month through EPL's off-season

'alo garcons

2007-06-08T11:54:00.000-07:00

My "HOT" list:

ALGERIA: FROM THE PEOPLE FOR THE PEOPLE
-Albert Camus Books (wiki) = L'Etranger (The Stranger), A Happy Death, The Fall, The Plague...
-This led me to a further fascination of Algeria (wiki). I kind of want to visit there on vacation (for a day) now as the first part of The Stranger describes a beautiful setting. Algiers (wiki) is a port town that gets crazy hot in the summer (my fave) and is in Africa where I really want to visit. Slowly planning a trip to France for December (cold setting boo) in which Jen and I will hit Paris, the South of France, and hopefully Algiers or Morocco (as my grandfather said Morocco was the place to go).
-Of course, further current Algerian references: ZIDANE (movie and soundtrack by Mogwai....plus everlasting idolization), French movie The Battle of Algiers (1966) with music by Ennio Morricone, and other Algerian footballers.

"A Sunny Place For Shady People" - W. Somerset Maugham describing Monte Carlo (an early equivalent to Las Vegas).
-LAS VEGAS! going in a week for the weekend with the whole fam, very excited. Attendees: Myself, Jennifer, Mother, Father, Brother, and Brother's Girlfriend (first time meeting rest of fam). Did you know that the biggest vice of straight-edge peeps is gambling? Staying at the Golden Nugget in the old school downtown Freemont St area. Not a fan of the strip, not worth the $$$ and not classic Vegas at all.
-Actually did a little research on a music job in Vegas, uh oh.
-Further references: Specifically purchased a 3 hour PBS documentary dvd on Vegas (used), growing my Sinatra catalog including the pretty awesome Vegas Box Set (4 CD's and 1 DVD) boo ya. Also a Las Vegas Collection CD and a Dean Martin essentials CD...I actually really like lounge music?!?!? Perhaps, part of my "old-man" demeanor.

MUSIC:
BATTLES: Mirrored (Warp Records)
Great Northern - Trading Twilight For Daylight (Eenie Meenie Records)
CocoRosie - The Adventures Of Ghosthorse And Stillborn (Touch & Go Records)
Leonard Cohen - Songs Of Love And Hate (Columbia Records)
Massive Attack - 100th Window (Virgin Records)
Frank Sinatra - In The Wee Small Hours (Capitol Records)
Beirut - Gulag Orkestra (BaDaBing Records)
Blonde Redhead - 23 (4AD Records)

OTHER/MISC:
-Hells Kitchen, Season 3
-Birthday Month/Summertime
-REAL Football in August :( so far away
-Santa Monica Public Library (Always Hot)
-Marta's blog

EARTH DAY POST

2007-04-24T17:57:00.000-07:00

In the spirit of the earth, I wanted to take time out to draw a quote from the book "Pale Blue Dot" by Carl Sagan written 1994
Amazon /// Carl Sagan wiki

The book analyzes our planet, and other planets and how the Apollo program put our view of earth in prespective and the future of the space program.

This quote is taken from a chapter about the prespective of another life form coming across our planet in the solar system and analyzing it over a long period of time...because space is about long periods of time...

"By this point your expedition to the Earth must be considered highly successful. You've characterized the enviroment; you've detected life; you've found manifestations of intelligent beings' you may even have identified the dominant species, the one transfixed with geometry and rectilinearity. Surely this planet is worth a longer and more detailed study. That's why you've now inserted your spacecraft into orbit around the Earth.

Looking down on the planet, you uncover new puzzles. All over the Earth, smokestacks are pouring carbon dioxide and toxic chemicals into the air. So are the dominant beings who run on the roadways. But carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas. As you watch, the of it in the atmosphere increases steadily, year after year. The same is true of methane and other greenhouse gases. If this keeps up, the temperature of the planet is going to increase. Spectroscopically, you discover another class of molecules being injected into the air, the chlorofluorocarbons. Not only are they greenhouses gases, but they are also devastatingly effective in destroying the protective ozone layer.

You look more closely at the center of the South American continent, which (as you know by now) is a vast rain forest. Every night you see thousands of fires. In the daytime, you find the region covered with smoke. Over the years, all over the planet, you find less and less forest and more and more scrub desert.

You look down on the large island of Madagascar. The rivers are colored brown, generating a vast stain in the surrounding ocean. This is topsoil being washed out to sea at a rate so high that in another few decades there will be none left. The same thing is happening, you note, at the mouths of rivers all over the planet.
But no topsoil means no agriculture. In another century, what will they eat? What will they breathe? How will they cope with a changing and more dangerous enviroment?

From your orbital perspective, you can see that something has unmistakably gone wrong. The dominant organisms, whoever they are (who have gone to so much trouble to rework the surface) are simultaneously destroying their ozone layer and their forests, eroding their topsoil, and performing massive, uncontrolled experiments on the planet's climate. Haven't they noticed what's happening? Are they oblivious to their fate? Are they unable to work together on behalf of the enviroment that sustains them all?

Perhaps, you think, it's time to reassess the conjecture that there's intelligent life on Earth."

HAPPY EARTH DAY

Where You Been Man???

2007-03-04T20:34:00.000-08:00

Yeah, I totally suck. My hits are dropping like flys...total bummer.
OK, here is what is happening the makes me not post
///busy with the j.o.b.
///really busy with the j.o.b. (see SXSW)
///Radio Perfik with Bobby Alt and friends keeping me really busy
///ADD, nuff said
///just go read Cat Dirt his is better.

RANTS

- I'm very happy to say that I am involved in the planning of what is going to be a very amazing engagement coming to San Diego in early May with Catdirt (see his blog for tidbits shrouded with mystery). A REAL Festival with a 3500 person capacity that benefits the theatre itself. It's about California (Southern mainly). Possibly 30 acts ranging from tiny local up-and-comers to nationals. Just working on the logistics, more details to follow obviously. Want to play?

-SXSW is in a week, shitballs. Here is who I want to see: A Northern Chorus, The Stooges (woohoo), and uhhh...that is about it. Yeah, that is what happens when you have 15 events going on during the festival...bummer!

-March 22nd Viper Room show. I am putting it on through my gig and it is going to be fun. Check out Viper Room for the details. Street Drum Corps w/ Gents, Goes Cube, Daughters Of Mara, and Foreign Islands. NY vs LA somewhat...good times.

Okay, tune time. Some cute ones...all stuff I'm listening too...hopefully some newbies.

Nouvelle Vague - The Guns Of Brixton (originally by The Clash)
Nouvelle Vague - Ever Fallen In Love (originally by The Buzzcocks)

Richard Oh of BigStereo got me this album and its pretty unique! Really mellow electro with hautning vocals a la Xiu Xiu or some shit. Listen to the Intro track first, it reminds me of the music from old 80's movies like Risky Business or Gleaming The Cube.
Chromatics - Shining Violence
Chromatics - In The City ...from the album In Shining Violence coming soon

San Diego, represent! THE MUSLIMS!!!
The Muslims - Extinction

And last but not least, after 2 trips to RADIO PERFIK, I have become an even bigger fan of Mike Watt. Here is a tune from his solo album (he also played it live as DOS on RADIO PERFIK, check the blog on the myspace for that).
Mike Watt - Drove Up From Pedro

Wow, it's been a while...

2007-02-16T11:19:00.000-08:00

Man, I suck at consistent tasks...I guess it's my Alpha Delta Delta. I have been really busy with RADIO PERFIK, I added a co-host, a good friend (and good talker!), the best drummer I have witnessed, Bobby Alt. We had Mike Watt on the show (ahhhhhhhhhhh) and that went really well. Click here to go to the RADIO PERFIK myspace blog and download the Podcasts.

Here is a tune I have been loving, it's off of Television's second album, Adventure. It is called "Days" and it's a real nice solid track, dig it.

Television - Days

I Love This Song

2007-01-25T17:13:00.000-08:00

Hey,
How are you? Haven't Spoken In A While, My Bad. It's Been Pretty Busy, with this, and that. But hey, here is a song I have been digging for you as a sign that I still care.

Love

Perfik

Zongamin - Bongo Song

Tim Burgess Radio Perfik Setlist and Podcast

2007-01-23T10:59:00.000-08:00

Tim Burgess Podcast Up!

Podcast Link : http://www.zshare.net/audio/nicecast-archived-audio-20070122-1804-mp3.html
or you can just click here

Here is the Setlist for Last Night:

The Stooges - Down On The Street
The Good, The Bad, And The Queen - Herculean
Black Lips - Not A Problem
Silversun Pickups - Rusted Wheel
Dead Meadow - At Her Open Door
Lou Reed - This Magic Moment
John Cale & Terry Riley - The Soul Of Patrick Lee
Love - A House Is Not A Motel
Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds - The Weeping Song
New Order - Paradise
A Certain Ratio - Shack Up
Warsaw - Living In The Ice Age
*The Chameleons - Swamp Thing
*Tilly And The Wall - You And I Misbehaving
*Orange Juice - Falling And Laughing
*John Cooper Clarke - I Don't Want To Be Nice
*The Charlatans - N.Y.C. (Weird Science Remix)
The Whip - Muzzle No. 1
Working For A Nuclear Free City - Dead Fingers Talking
*The Hatchaw Social - How Soon Was Then?
*My Bloody Valentine - We Have All The Time In The World
*Guillemots - Trains To Brazil
*Joan As The Police Woman - Eternal Flame
*CSS - Lets Make Love And Listen To Death From Above
*Country Got Soul - Sheldon Church Yard
*The Charlatans - Indian Rope
*Wire - 12XU

*=Tim Burgess Pick

www.myspace.com/timburgess
www.myspace.com/thecharlatans
www.myspace.com/radioperfik

TIM BURGESS

2007-01-22T15:54:00.000-08:00

TIM BURGESS (Charlatans) live tonight on RADIO PERFIK (www.myspace.com/radioperfik) from 6-8pm PST! Playing some tunes and chatting a bit!

Totally Excited!

Wow Coachella DIDN'T "Jump The Shark"

2007-01-22T11:03:00.000-08:00

I was expecting pure bummer after hearing the Headliners (which have all previously headlined at Coachella), but I was pleasantly suprised when I went onto Coachella.com and got the FULL line-up. Not what the Radio Stations have been passing around.

Here is my "MUST" list
1) Happy Mondays
2) Jesus And Mary Chain
3) Roky Erickson and the Explosives
4) Erol Alkan
5) Soulwax
...and now in no particular order:
Justice, DJ Shadow, El-P, Hot Chip, Peter, Bjorn and John, Manu Chao, Kaiser Chiefs, Jose Gonzalez, Junior Boys, and Gogol Bordello
...and just to "see" them because I am curious:
The Kooks, Klaxons, Tapes 'n Tapes, The Good The Bad and The Queen, Cornelius, Lily Allen, Jarvis Cocker, Felix Da Housecat, Digitalism, Tokyo Police Club, Blonde Redhead, , Ghostface Killah, Evil Nine, Spank Rock, and Explosions In The Sky
...avoiding at all costs:
Circa Survive, Against Me!, Tilly And The Wall, and probably Peaches
...will happily enjoy:
The Rapture, the headlining acts, Willie Nelson, Interpol, Travis, LCD Soundsystem, Damien Rice, Placebo, Air, Pharoahe Monch, and Ozomatil

That is my wrap, I'll say that I am very much more enthusiastic this year as last year was a bummer for acts. Most of the acts had played the area recently and there was no special reunions of a cult-esque band.

See you there dudes.

Podcast Up

2007-01-18T11:49:00.000-08:00

Go To RADIO PERFIK and check the blog for tracklisting and podcasts for the 1/15/07 show feat. Peter and the Wolf (myspace) LIVE SESSIONS.

It was awesome.
Next Week: Tim Burgess (Charlatans) - Playing Tunes
Week After: Bobby Alt (drummer extraordinaire) - Playing Tunes
Feb 5: The New Motherfuckers (myspace) - Live Session
and much much more...

David Beckham Pt. II

2007-01-16T12:22:00.000-08:00

So how can David Beckham be the single most important factor for US Soccer?

Here is my breakdown. People want to see David Beckham. He is a sex symbol, he is a cultural icon, at one time he was a lethal footballer, and still for my money he has the best freekick of anybody. Now also add he and his family are hounded left and right wherever they go by paparazzi to the point where they are bigger than most celebrities. His ability on the field is only a small portion of his importance to MLS and US Soccer (granted he doesn't get injured and never play).

Here are the instant benefits:
///Season Tickets Selling Like Mad ($$$)
///Galaxy had yet to sign an exclusive jersey manufacturer, so obviously the price has just gone up exponentially ($$$)
///World Press Coverage (Including daily LA Times articles, even a whole page dedicated to Soccer!)
///BUZZ!

So once the buzz dies down a bit, what is Becks going to do? Well, expect a promo tour including a signing that is going to be out of control crazy and I'll probably end up going to that shit (just like the Chelsea one where I waited 5 hours...jersey sits in a bag next to my bed...shit). But more importantly, Becks is going to come into the Galaxy training camp probably a little early as Real Madrid says he can go when he wants, and he is getting bashed by the club so why would he stick around. Galaxy HAS to win, which shouldn't be a problem, they have the capability...what there are only like 5 teams they have to do better than...and if they do that, then they are set on the MLS front. But why will Beckham save US Soccer?

When I look at sport I see a natural progression starting with the "upper-class" usually crickity-ass crackers exclusively playing a sport and creating leagues. Then after time, the sport spreads throughout all communities and walks of life and you have a more well rounded game. I am also going to go out on a limb and say from my personal expierience and observation I have found that white people are not the best at sports and other minorities are more athletic!?!?! Correct me if I'm wrong. I was speaking to a big hip-hop music manager a while back and he said, "Once the hood starts playing Soccer, then the US will start challenging the world." Well that could be true, and the "hood" represents the lower class and once you start having the cliche of the good kid from a shitty neighborhood and shitty family rising above to excel at a sport, well you have gone full cirle. When you look at the Streetball contests and some running backs you can see some of the most gifted athletes in the world, so I hope that one day those same kids will put down a soccer ball and start kicking it around and take the US to the next level. It is the last conquerable sport to the US, everything else the US excels at for the most part. But in Soccer, there is some shame. So back to Beckham. Basically, as I am boring you, i know, i'm busy...this sport will be forced to spread. Beckham will do his darndest and the Galaxy will as well to market the shit out of this guy, and it's such an easy sport to play...get a ball and put it down anywhere...you don't need lines or bases or anything. Fuck America's past-time, Mark Macguire was shooting up when he hit 72 home runs or whatever, and same with that dipshit Barry Bonds. And i'm tired of Iverson's attitude and who will ever forget the Kobe Colorado incident? Ray Lewis the wife beater? I much rather have Joey Barton showing his ass to a bunch of home fans on an away day, and a sport that is not just in America! The Superbowl and the World Series....which only include US (and a few canadian teams). I'm sorry, Champions League Soccer is the best, and if MLS can step up maybe Champions League can go worldwide...it's gotta help political situations as well. Pele was brought to the US in the 70's partly by Kisinger telling Brazil that it will help US relations with the country.

Well, expect this:
///More World Renowned Old Foggies coming to the MLS (see Edgar Davids!, Fat Ronaldo, Figo, and Raul)
///A building buzz up until World Cup 2010 in South Africa

Oh well fuck it, I bought my Galaxy Season tickets today via freESAC and I am stoked to see less empty seats and more inflated prices!

If you want me to continue my rant on why Beckham will save US Soccer, you are invited to a game, and I will blab on about that shit and give you meaningless facts about the game and it's players.

World Cup 2022 is going to be won by team USA! P.S. Edu sucks.

My Response: David Beckham

2007-01-11T12:01:00.000-08:00

So, in my group of friends, they know I'm a football fanatic (ESP by American Standards). This morning I recieved calls and text after text about David Beckham signing a $250 Million deal with the Los Angeles Galaxy. For sometime we ("insiders") knew this was going to happen, just not when. Around 2003 there was a study stating that David Beckham was the #2 most recognized person in the world. #1 was the Pope John Paul II, and in 2005 he passed away, so I believe that makes Becks #1! (Although "W" the turd may be moving up that list quickly as he is hated worldwide!) David Beckham (Becks for short) already has a firm plant in Los Angeles with his "David Beckham Academy" that teaches young'ns how to play the beautiful game. Becks is hollywood, he drinks bubbly with P Diddy, he is what Paris Hilton is to US Weekly in Spain and previously England. He is married to a Spice Girl for fuck sake! His kids are named Brooklyn, Romeo and Cruz!?!?!

Here Is What To Expect:
///To quote Spaceballs "MERCHANDISING, MERCHANDISING, MERCHANDISING!" Galaxy has held off on a Jersey sponsor for 2007 so far, Smartest move of their existence. Put Becks on a plastic visor and it will sell for $20
///Becks face plastered EVERYWHERE for advertising!
///Sold out games to see the man wallop a free kick
///Posh Spice going out with Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. Us Weekly ATTACKING the family every chance they get in LA.
///And I'm calling it here...Posh goes Scientology (supposively Katie Holmes and Crazy Cruise are "really close" with the Beckhams) But becks has crosses all over her, he is a good catholic boy.
///David Beckham will never play for the England National Team again, he was captain this time last year, and got dropped from the squad once they hired a new coach. Recently people thought he would be coming back, but that is now not the case.

BUT, let me state right here and now, DAVID BECKHAM CAN BE THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR FOR US SOCCER.

More on that tomorrow....

Beckham Wiki Glith (hilarious)

Anatomy of a Hit Song (UK)

2007-01-10T11:21:00.000-08:00

Klaxons - Golden Skans (Single Release Date: January 27th, 2007)
File Under: New Rave (wiki)

Ah, love the UK buzz! "Golden Skans" is a good song. Good Sound, good hook, good vibe. So how do you make that song even better? Well, 1st you keep it on lockdown (i.e. away from blogs for as long as you can). 2nd REMIXES everybodies favorite! And who do you call on to remix the tunes? Well, in my opinion one of the best remixers of 2006/07 Mr. Erol Alkan (myspace) who is known for his:

///Hot Chip - Boy From School (Extended Re-Work)
///Justice - Waters Of Nazareth (Dur Dur Durrr Re-Edit)
///Scissor Sisters - I Don't Feel Like Dancing (Carnival Of Light Re-Work)
///Production for The Long Blondes (Track: Fulwood Babylon) and Mystery Jets (Track: Crossroads)
///His Club Night in England called "Trash" which just finished it's 10 year run last night!

3rd You lock up THAT remix and have fluokids blog from France unload a DUB version of the track as an "Exxxclusive." Then as people are begging for the Vocal Edit you release ANOTHER remix by another hot Remixer SebastiAn (myspace.com) from France a la Ed Banger Records. Then whilst people are into that, somebody says...hey head over to Discobelle to get the Vocal Edit, because they dropped it, even though they "were not suppossed to" according to the Label/Mgmt, whatever. And Viola....BUZZ. Everybody wants what they can't have.

Feel This:
Klaxons - Golden Skans
Klaxons - Golden Skans (Erol Alkan's Ekstra Spektral Dub)
Klaxons - Golden Skans (SebastiAn 1.2.0 Remix)
Klaxons - Golden Skans (Erol Alkan's Ekstra Spektral Extended Vocal Re-Work)

I think Erol's mix beats SebastiAn's hands down as I think SebastiAn's sounds a lot like Justin Timberlake's "My Love". Before I heard the Vocal Edit I was all into the dub version and the vocals kinda let me down.

Well anyway, i'm sure this post will help my google love, gotta love the "indie blogger nation"

RADIO PERFIK: Episode 1 Podcast

2007-01-09T11:58:00.000-08:00

So the debut of RADIO PERFIK went well. I have no experience on the radio, but I was happy with the result. As always, The Gray Kid is hilarious and it made for a good show. Here is what was played...

Sebastien Tellier - La Ritournelle
Minutemen - This Ain't No Picnic
Fugazi - Blueprint
Mason Dixon - Hurry Through The Night
The Twilight Singers - There's Been An Accident
The Hard Tomorrows - Glossy Eyed Sweetheart*
Paul Michel - Expire*
Klaxons - Golden Skans
The Long Blondes - Fulwood Babylon
The Whip - Trash
The Gray Kid - Sooth Sayer ***Exclusive Premier On Radio Perfik***
Missy Elliot - Slide*
Subtle - Middleclass Stomp
Radiohead - Morning Bell*
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Machine*
Air - Run*
Cold War Kids - Hospital Beds
Martha Wainwright - Bloody Mother Fucking Asshole
The Durruti Column - Otis
The Gray Kid - Race World/Stephanie B Microscopic ***"Cover Ups" From The Pilgramage Mixtape*** available for free download at www.people-food.com
Lansing-Dreiden - The Eternal Lie*
Warren Zevon - Werewolves Of London
The Stone Roses - Sally Cinnamon
Peter And The Wolf - Safe Travels
Bat For Lashes - Trophy
Bobby "Blue" Bland - How Does A Cheatin' Woman Feel*
Ludacris - Ultimate Satisfaction*

*The Gray Kid Pics

www.graykid.com
www.myspace.com/thegraykid
www.myspace.com/radioperfik

"Podcast" link below (it's basically a 60MB mp3)
RADIO PERFIK Live 1/8/07 feat. The Gray Kid on LittleRadio.com via Z-Share, so click through all the ads that make it FREE fools

New Air Album E-Card

2007-01-09T10:42:00.000-08:00

Worth checking out from EMI France. Very well done E-Card featuring a large portion of "Once Upon A Time" the first single from le nouvel album "Pocket Symphony." I thought they broke up once one of the guys did Darkel and the Charlotte Gainsbourg album, guess not.

AIR "Pocket Symphony" E-Card

Merci!

Hey Writers: 33 1/3

2007-01-08T12:19:00.000-08:00

I really like the 33 1/3 series. It's a great idea and perfect for people who rock the Alpha Delta Delta.

They need writers to write about amazing albums, see link:

33 1/3 Proposals for Future Books

Here are my pics, maybe I'll come up with one, but then I would have to write it...hmmm...I have a blog with writing on it:

Johnny Cash - Bitter Tears (wiki)
Danzig - Danzig I (wiki) *i may actually submit this, I could do it
Murder City Devils - Empty Bottles Broken Hearts (allmusic)
13th Floor Elevators - Easter Everywhere (wiki)
New Order - Power, Corruption, and Lies (wiki)

here is a list of what has already been done:
#1-#35
#36 and on
As well from the 33 1/3 blog, what's planned to be released listed here.

The Inconvenient Truth

2007-01-05T11:06:00.000-08:00

So I decided to add a "The Inconvinient Truth" counter to my blog, check it out to the right (or if you have a wacky browser, below).
I finally saw the film and I was glad I did. I own a "gas guzzler" which makes me a terrorist! No, not really, but it does make me an asshole! My car has a good year left in it, and once he/she bids farewell, my ass is getting a Civic Hybrid, a Prius Hybrid, or a Camry Hybrid.
Reasons:

///I'm a fan of the enviroment (vegetarian too!)
///I will get over twice as much mileage (450+ miles on a tank of gas, compared to 200!)
///The cars aren't that expensive, and you get a tax break, and save money on gas
///I don't want to be the reason any more troops die in Iraq because of our quest for oil, why do you think our US Army HQ is right next door to the Oil Ministry?

Go rent the movie, buy it, netflix it, steal it, whatever. I would vote for Al Gore for President in 2008, he needs work but at least he has a heartbeat. I dont think there will be a serious candidate out of the Dem ass party that could do any better. The Evil of Two Lessers as it is put. Obama and Hillary aren't going to go anywhere at this point in time, even after the dumb hillbilly we have in office now. Either way, I am afraid of Global Warming, I have mainly lived in LA my whole life where the weather is a constant basic 70 degrees with barely any cold weather or rain and recently things are wacky and I think it has to be what we are doing to our enviroment.

The image below taken December 24, 1968 on Apollo 8 was the first image of it's kind. After the astronauts had passed around the dark side of the moon where they had no communication to the anyone, they saw this, called "Earthrise." According to Mr. Gore, this image launched the Enviromental Movement overnight, and it makes sense to me. We are nothing in this universe. 6.5 billion people on that tiny little blip, check yourselves fools!

UK Buzz Band: The Twang

2007-01-04T12:58:00.000-08:00

When I was in Manchester, UK for the In The City music conference, there was one band that was buzzing beyond belief and that was The Twang (myspace). Every A+R weasel was just dying to get into their sold out Academy 3 show. The talk of the town was that this Birmingham band sounds like The Happy Mondays, ok I'm sold. Who doesn't like Shaun Ryder, dude was/is nuts. I passed on the show, because I had tickets to see Manchester City beat Middlesborough! I finally got to go to a Premiership Match, so I was excited beyond belief, fuck some buzz band.

Anyway, this morning on the way to work I was listening to BBC Radio 1 (via Sirius) and sure enough I heard "Either Way" by the Twang. I like this tune, but its like the Happy Mondays minus the drugs (so you are left with basically nothing) deciding they want to sound like Keane. It is a good pop song, I guess I sorta hear the Mondays reference, but whatever, check it out before they invade your indie night in Brooklyn or whatever. They signed to B-Unique I guess, and stonewalled a bunch of majors, I commend them for that.

The Twang - Either Way *blowing up on BBC Radio 1
The Twang - Cloudy Room
The Twang - Wide Awake

Let's see if he has the Shaun Ryder swagger...

Side Note: Chelsea FC are going after my boy Micah Richards (of MCFC duh), but the price tag is 18 million pounds and he is not for sale, HA! I knew that dude was the man, I called it. If I he was an artist that I repped at SESAC then I would be making bank!

Leaked!

2007-01-03T16:20:00.000-08:00

So, I found this when I was going through all my CD's that I have in boxes that are "not for show." Because I have so many damn compact discs, many are relegated to the garage where they sit in a nice box until I decide to get some together to go off to the CD death camp that is Amoeba so I can get trade in value and shop even more! Upon excavating these dingy boxes I found this gem...

This disc I found is one track that failed to make it to an album released by a comedian whilst I worked at Geffen. It is HILARIOUS, and definitely too crazy to make it to an album. The original artist heard the track and just nodded their heads like WTF?!?! I am not going to say the name of the person I would hate for google to catch on and get my ass in trouble. So I guess this is just for my regulars. Dude is one of the funniest guys on the planet and once you hear his voice you will know who I am talking about.

Crackers.mp3

Happy New Year

2007-01-03T16:09:00.000-08:00

Things are great over here. My radio show on Little Radio starts on Monday (Jan. 8th) and so far I have The Gray Kid, Peter and the Wolf, and Tim Burgess!!!!!!!! all confirmed to drop by for the month of January. Set your clocks now and help spread the love!!! If you are in the area, come on down to the warehouse and hang out!

2007 is going to be big for all of us, I promise.

For All Mankind

2006-12-28T16:42:00.000-08:00

For All Mankind
(1989)wiki (*academy award winner)

This is an amazing documentary that features 100% NASA footage and Astronaut Commentary that goes through the journey from the "blue marble" to the Moon. What makes it even more interesting is that Brian Eno (one of my favorite people of all time) does the soundtrack as part of his Apollo:Atmospheres and Soundtracks album (the first Eno album I ever bought). One of the great things about NASA is that they documented everything they could via video, especially because of the hundreds of people on the ground in Houston and at the Kennedy Space Center who couldn't see a thing without those cameras. For a long time the footage just collected dust until director Al Reinert got permission to make this film. It's the end of the year...if you have the time...take a look. I have it on DVD too, and I can make copies, I'm sure it's a really good movie for stoners.

Part I

Part II

Part III

Part IV

Part V

Part VI

Part VII

Part VIII

Ellen Allien & Apparat and Apparat Vs. Mac Tonight

2006-12-28T12:05:00.000-08:00

Orchestra of Bubbles was my #11 album of the year. I'm going to rely on Wiki to give you the background on Ms. Allien (take it away wiki) and Apparat (wiki).

Do the homework, here are some tunes...
1. Turbo Dreams
2. Way Out (mp3)
3. Retina
4. Rotary (mp3)
5. Jet
6. Sleepless
7. Floating Points
8. Under
9. Do Not Break (mp3) *recommended
10. Leave Me Alone (mp3) *recommended
11. Edison
12. Bubbles

As well, here is a amazingly overdubbed TV interview. Note that Apparat looks a hell of a lot like Mac Tonight (see pic below) from the 1987-88 McDonald's TV campaign (a la 0:56 secs). I love Mac Tonight, whenever I see pertruding chins I always think of that motherfucker, I hate pertruding chins!

Might as well go down this road now too...

Oh yeahhh....classic

New Invention!

2006-12-27T15:03:00.000-08:00

So, I spent the small christmas/holiday break (5 days) up in San Francisco. Anybody who has driven to SF from LA should be familiar with the Route 5 that takes about 6 hours to complete and is pretty much a straight line for 4 of those hours. In my life I have probably done that drive 40 times, and after that many times, you pretty much know the lay of the land. Maricopa is the beginning of "the Grapevine", and when you get to the Coalinga turnoff you are exactly half way (and you eat at Red Robin or Harris Ranch). It is a journey that takes you from one metropolis to another, and in a span of 300 miles, things are very different.

Yesterday, I was on the road with the family and lady, and I was bored as usual. The sun had gone down, so I couldn't read anymore, and for some reason we started talking about Wikipedia (which I use heavily in this blog and love dearly). Enter: my blackberry (with uber-fast internet shits). I said, here i'll show you some wikipedia action. We had been talking about one of my favorite people Abbott Kinney, so I wiki-ed him and read out loud all it had to say. There was an overwhelming response of "Interesting." At this point, we were all bored (traffic) so I started looking around and wiki-ing the cities we were passing and reading the results. Again, "Interesting." All in all we learned a lot of the history, census info, background, and famous people of Maricopa, Tejon Ranch, Palmdale, San Rafael, and Stevenson Ranch. As well we learned the history behind "The Grapevine" which is really amazing. It started out as "The Ridge Route"(highly recommended reading!) which connected the San Fernando and San Joaquin valleys, and I bet you didn't know that without the Ridge Route the state was most likely going to be cut in half and formed into two different states...that would be a bummer. See below for a view of the Grapevine in 1934 looking towards the San Joaquin Valley (north)...courtesy of wiki.

I love California, it's a great state, and it's a newer state. I like the east coast (NY especially), but it's a lot older and NYers were driving cars up and down Broadway when original Californians were living off their land and still figuring ways to water to every part of the state. California really came into with the development of the film industry in Los Angeles, and the Gold Rush in San Francisco. These instances brought a very unique influx of people whose traces are still visible today. (I could talk about California for hours...)

Well anyway, my point is my invention is driving whilst wiki-ing reference points during your journey. Definitely makes the time pass and your brain loves it as well. Try it out if you have a drive of over 50 miles. What should it be called?
///Driwiking (Drive + Wiki)???
///Road Wik (Road Trip + Wiki) ???
///Route Wiki-Wik (Route 66 + Wiki) ???
///Cwiki (Car + Wiki) ???
Whatever it is called, it's 100 times better than watching a DVD in a car, don't we have enough opportunities to watch TV? Now that shit is on your little cell phone screen...awesomely stupid.

I'm going to get the patent office on the line, this is going somewhere...

Side Note------> Best Driving Albums
Neil Young - Harvest
Ryan Adams & The Cardinals - Cold Roses
The Eagles - Their Greatest Hits (1971-1975)

Year End: 2006

2006-12-21T12:41:00.000-08:00

ALBUMS OF THE YEAR 2006

#1 The Twilight Singers – Powder Burns
“Powder Burns,” is a great rock record. It is a complete album, every song works and I was very surprised I like it as much as I did. I was never a Dulli/Afgan Whigs fan, but I found this album quite wholesome and it got the most of my spins this year.

#2 Sebastian Tellier – Sessions
I fell in love with Sebastian Tellier this year, his catalogue is great, but when he breaks it down and sits in front of a piano it’s amazing. “La Ritournelle” is easily one of the greatest songs in many years, and I also had the pleasure of seeing Sebastian live with a band in London and it was everything I could have wanted.

#3 Sonic Youth – Rather Ripped
Honestly, never a huge Sonic Youth fan, I liked the tunes had the albums but never found myself putting them on frequently or remembering songs. But this album is really good, a huge step from the last few releases. Highlight was getting them to Little Radio for their album release.

#4 Beirut – Gulag Orkestar
Wasn’t expecting to like this album as much as I did, but I guess it’s my Russian roots kicking in. The album has great instrumentation and is easily one of the most unique offerings in a long time.

#5 Hot Chip – The Warning
“Boy From School” period! Great album that I got an advance for (thanks Schmalz) and definitely a huge step up from “Coming On Strong.” A good dancy-pop record for everyone.

#6 His Name Is Alive – Raindrops Rainbow EP/ Detrola
2 albums here (cheap I know), but HNIA I didn’t know much about but I found the vocals and ideas of “Detrola” really exceptional and weird. As well, the EP is really well done and are great re-workings of great songs, definitely underrated band.

#7 Witch – S/T
I love this band. J Mascis on drums makes it all the merrier and these guys just put out a great stoner-metal album because they wanted too. No aspirations to take over the world or tour too much, but the album will stand as a winner. Saw a 2 Song 25 minute set at SXSW that ruled my brain.

#8 Islands – Return To The Sea
I was never a fan of the Unicorns but I stuck with this band after catching a really intimate show at SXSW. They are kooky Canadians, but “Swans (Life After Death)” remains one of my favorite songs of the year, also clocking in at 9 minutes and 31 seconds!

#9 Bat For Lashes – Fur And Gold
Charlie (UpsideDownStupidHat) was the one who turned me on to this girl, it’s a mixture of Bjork and PJ Harvey with a Native American vibe. Plus having Josh T Pearson (Lift To Experience) as guest vocals on your single really sparks my interest. A great dark album that has yet to see a US release.

#10 Mason Dixon – Hurry Through The Night
Springsteen/Neil Young “Harvest” updated Rock. Great album that has yet to see a proper release! I’m sure these guys will make waves, I love this album for its consistency from start to finish, ever note from every instrument fits.

#11 Ellen Allien & Apparat – Orchestra Of Bubbles
BPitch is something I don’t know about, so is Berlin. But I really like the minimal electro this album offers and it is definitely a cornerstone of the German/BPitch/DJ scene. On the mellow tip at times too, great collaboration because I don’t like these 2 artists when left to their own devices, that’s what makes it a great album.

#12 Neko Case – Fox Confessor Brings The Flood
I have country roots (Johnny Cash is my #1), and this album is what country should be today. Taking the roots and updating the sound and lyrical content that represents what it’s like to be a singer-songwriter in the country. Talking about getting high and being able to go to Neko’s sisters house if they promise to watch the baby, that’s country!

#13 Bob Dylan – Modern Times
It’s Bob, great songs, good sound, and as always lyrically supreme. I liked this more than his last couple of albums and that surprised me. He remains the greatest.

#14 Tom Petty – Highway Companion
See above pretty much. Tom Petty is a great songwriter, always comes with it. Got to see him live this year for the first time. Whoopi.

#15 Subtle – For Hero: For Fool
Always been a small fan of the Mush/anticon. Crew, but this album took me by surprise. It is a rock like album and it really sways.

#16 Goes Cube – Beckon The Dagger God
What happened to balls our rock? Answer: Goes Cube. “Punishing” songs that were much needed to wipe away the stain that is Wolfmother.

#17 Various Artists - Monsieur Gainsbourg Revisited
You never would have thought that translating French songs into English would sound good, but Cat Power, Marianne Faithful, and Placebo to name a few do a great job of it. Really good sounding album that surprised the shit out of me.

#18 Tropicalia: A Brazilian Revolution In Sound
Soul Jazz Records strikes again with another great gem from the archives. I have always wanted to go to Brazil and this album makes me want to go even more.

#19 Kavinsky – Teddy Boy EP
This made my list because it’s just so awesome. From the Records Makers label (Sebastian Tellier/Label Heads = AIR), this guy is a mixture of Miami Vice meets Nintendo. A staple to my DJ set, and something I have played for everybody this year.

#20 Robbie Williams – Rudebox
Ha, wasn’t really expecting much from this album when I picked it up in England (for Jen) but I was pleasantly surprised. Good singles, a Manu Chao cover, and the 80’s/90’s songs are great. Gotta show love for Robbie, no one else in the US does.

Songs Of The Year

#1 The Whip – Trash
The best band in Manchester right now. Ex-Members of Nylon Pylon these guys are the perfect mix of Soulwax and New Order. Amazing live, stand up guys, and destined for greatness. I love spinning this to unsuspecting ears it’s impossible not to love it on a dancefloor.

Justice/Simian Mobile Disco/Erol Alkan
The indie-dance electro scene made this year a lot of fun. I have always been a big Soulwax fan, and these guys are descending from that sound. I really liked playing these tunes to a crowd and watching them get down on the dance floor. I am a man of the beat. Most Notably: Erol Alkan’s remixes of Justice “Waters of Nazereth” Hot Chip “Boys From School” production of Long Blondes “Fulwood Babylon.” Justice Vs. Simian “We Are Your Friends” and Simian Mobile Disco “Hustler” and “Tits & Acid”

Jim Noir – Eanie Meany
Before, During, and After EVERY World Cup game this year, Jim Noir’s track “Eanie Meany” was played in the Nike commercial featuring top stars of the World Cup past and present. Great tune, and the guy is from Manchester.

Babyshambles – Fuck Forever
Pete Doherty is a junkie, but a superstar. I never really like the Libertines, I passed off Babyshambles as group of idiots, then I heard a squiggly crackhead perform “Fuck Forever” live on the telly. Afterwards he came off to do an interview with Zane Lowe and he had no idea who he was, even though Zane had done a session with him and had met him several times. Yay for Crack! Just the fact that he sings “Fuck Forever” is pretty apparent that this guy is going to be dead real soon and he will be this generations Kurt Cobain and piss everyone off after his death. I can already see shirts flying off the shelves at Hot Topic.

Flops/Total Bummers

Kasabian and Killer Sophmore Slumps
I bought the first Kasabian album right when it came out in the UK and it was a total winner. I saw the Killers perform at Don Hill’s for CMJ days before they signed to Island and you knew they were going to blow up. Problem is, their sophomore albums suck ass. Trying to break out of their original sounds mean they went totally marginal and bored the shit out of everybody. Thanks for killing the faith that a hip band can live past 1 album!

…And You Will Know Us By The Trail of (cheap promo copies at retailers) Dead Album I really liked the last album, thought it should have gone a lot further than it did, the new album I put it on and it is a mess. That is the end of the road with Interscope I presume, at least last time everybody really liked the album.

I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness Album
These guys were slated to do something great. A few good EP’s came out and then they went in to record their full length debut and out came the biggest let down of the year. I wanted to like this band so much more, but no, Total Bummer!

Major Labels
I started the year at one, and finally ended a 6 year stint in June. It makes me so angry that the heads of these labels will only release “sure things” and horrible pop albums. No new ideas, same old corporate bullshit. The top execs at the label get richer while the people who are working their asses off don’t get bonus’ and Christmas parties revoked. Fuck that shit, the people who were once musical innovators are now just the same as the oppressors that run Wal-Mart. More and more labels turn into machines, A+R is a fucking joke (nobody signs anything that hasn’t already been featured in Rolling Stone), radio is the same model and still works, but it’s all corporate / red state rock or pop. And those are the only people still buying records, so everyone is at fault here! But Major Labels are shitting on people and bands and it is getting old really fast. At CMJ an A+R rep from a major said, “Hey we are hiring an A+R guy in LA, you would be perfect,” and without hesitation I said, “No thank you.” She was shocked, you would have to double my salary for me to re-enter the Major Label A+R scene where your bosses only ask care about the bottom line and have no interest in the music anymore. I would take the money and burn up a nice expense account before they caught on and kicked my ass to curb, a real swindle it would be!
All in all, it’s just not fun anymore. The morale at these labels is the lowest it could ever be, but it doesn’t matter, because when people leave labels, people jump to take their spots for less money and more bullshit. One thing is for sure, we need a new movement of music! When Red Hot Chili Peppers, Faith No More, and Radiohead got signed most people were like WTF is this sound, but it was backed by a good label and went on to sell millions and influence generations. Arctic Monkeys…not one of those bands, Franz Ferdinand….not one of those bands, Decemberists/Death Cab For Cute….not one of those bands.
I can rant and rave all I want, but at the end of the day, I think that in the next 5-10 years, working at a label will be just the same as any other corporate 9-5, not good money, and the only perk is a free cd/show every now and then. Working in the music business used to be waking up and saying, “I can’t believe I get paid to do this,” nowadays, not the case. Call me Keith Olberman...

The US Government

Guantanamo Bay (death camps), the US sElections, the Most Debt ever, Blood for Oil, Katrina response, Global Warming, and most importantly US citizens sitting back frustrated to the point where they stop paying attention! What The Fuck? I am so ready for change, revolution, and evolution, are you thinking about this?

"Silence Equals Consent" - DJ Shadow (among others)

"We support the troops the most because we say BRING THEM HOME!" - Jello Biafra

"It isn't just propaganda any more, it's 'prop-agenda '. It's not so much the control of what we think, but the control of what we think about." - Brian Eno

Happy Holidays!

IT's ON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2006-12-20T17:33:00.000-08:00

You Don't Know: Greg Weeks

2006-12-19T11:22:00.000-08:00

Maybe you do, if you know Espers (drag city), then you have heard him. But Greg Weeks also has performed as a solo artist since the late 90's.

Greg Weeks (official site / wiki / myspace)
///Philadelphian
///Part of the Acid-Folk scene
///Music is real minimal folky buzzy sounding
///(misc.) Rarely tours, never seen live, probably smokes a lot of pot

LOVE the album Artwork. Nothing like a softie to just brighten up your day!

Greg Weeks - Slightly West ep
1. One Summer Night
2. Unsettled (By The Sun)
3. Slightly West
4. Devils
5. Settle Down

Merry Xmas From MCFC!

2006-12-19T11:20:00.000-08:00

Manchester City Football Club Xmas Card

"Beautiful!"

One of my Records of the Year

2006-12-18T16:02:00.000-08:00

This list is forthcoming (just gathering all the juicy records to write about), but before I do so I want to talk about one of the special bands.

Mason Dixon (myspace & band site) are from Brooklyn, NY, and their new record is a great updated version of Bruce Springsteen with Neil Young's country rock twang. A few months back a friend sent me an advance of "Hurry Through The Night," and it absolutely floored me. It floored me to the point that last week I said to him, what's up with Mason Dixon, it's easily one of my favorite albums of the year, and he said "WOW, we are going to get a label in January." Dude....somebody....send this to your hip indie label friends. This band always had a blues-y feel since inception, but this record is a huge creative leap, and this band deserves some love. The album is a great listen from start to finish with a unique link tying everything together. "Hurry Through The Night" has a feeling that so many new albums lack, which gives each song a heartbeat and makes it all the more powerful.

When you listen to Neil Young's Harvest (see earlier post for my love of that album) there is something that ties it all together, it is the fact that the drums for almost all of the tracks have a similar simple beat which make it all flow. There is something in this album that does the same, maybe it is the guitiar tone, or keys, I dont know, but it works all subliminal-like. The Killers wish they could write this stuff (bold I know, but I'm just saying that the Killers tried to channel Springsteen and they failed miserably)!

I offer up a tune, knowing that it's only one piece of a 10 piece puzzle...you really need to hear it ot get the feel for it.

Mason Dixon - Hurry Through The Night
Listen to more tunes on Myspace, I don't want to give any away because I actually CARE this band's feelings! Also, note that I have nothing to do with this band on a working level (couldn't even if I wanted too) which hopefully makes my plea for a listen all the stronger!

Ode to TOWER

2006-12-15T17:44:00.000-08:00

After this weekend, Tower Records will be no more. In fact, whilst in Tower Records Santa Monica today, the manager came on the horn and said "Tower Records New Orleans #!@$ has closed its doors...forever!" Then a guy next to me was nodding his head and said, "It's like the Statue of Liberty closing." WAIT, the Statue of Liberty IS closed, because it's a target for Terrorists! Anywhoo, walking into Tower which boasted 70%-90% of EVERYTHING I just felt depressed. More people then I have ever seen rummaging through CD's, that was probably their problem, no one was really there. The record store business in general is a weird one, I'd say at least half of the people who walk in the store just browse, and I'd say of the "paying" half, probably 30% only buy 1-2 CD's/DVD's, and that leaves 20% who would perhaps spend over $30 upon visiting (I'm in that 20%). Shit, I have spent easily over $100 on CD's in a visit to a record store if I allow myself. Well, back to the happenings of the day. I was very interested to see what people were buying, what was left over, and what the hell I was going to find in a store so badly violated. I heard a 15 year old kid, a child of sorts say "There is no music here I like." That is a bummer, there was a whole slew of emo/pop-punk/shit just dying to go home with some young'n, I guess myspace doesn't sell records. While checking out the woman next to me had "Blood Is Trouble" by Greg Weeks (which I had seen in the Tower for weeks!) and I said, "That is a really good record, you will be happy," she smiled and said thanks. It is a good record, I'll blog about him soon. What also was great is that the same woman asked the guy behind the counter if some metal looking album (which I think was Unearthly Trance's new record...pal of mine) was any good, and the Tower employee said, "I don't know, if you buy that record then I'll give you this one for free" (eluding that if she got the Greg Weeks, she got a two-fer). That is when you know it's painful, and the shit has hit the fan. I managed to get 6 CD's (including 2 double discs) for $35.72. Originally I would have paid $117.93, shit talk a bout a deal. That's 70% off (GO FUCKING FIGURE)! I would have only paid full price for probably 1 of these CD's, taht doesn't include "Sale Prices," I'm cheap, cheap, cheap. So here is what I got, any thoughts, I went on whim basically. I will give a little synobis in the catdirtian method:

As so... Artist/Album/Why I bought it/Early Verdict:

Stars Of The Lid/The Ballasted Orchestra/I got 1 of their albums, its ambient, so I wanted to check this out/This shit rules, it's almost like Brian Eno's pinky!!!

Feathers/Feathers/I wanted this record, Folky, hipster loved, dudes make up Witch with J Mascis which I love/Still early, sounds alright, need to be in the mood

A Northern Chorus/Bitter Hands Resign/I always wanted this record, but didn't know enough to pay full price./I am a fan, "dream-pop" is what it is labeled as and it's definitely worth my $4.20 (not a drug reference)

Dub Trio/New Heavy/I got this because Mike Patton does 1 track, and it's on ROIR who put out Bad Brains first album/The Mike Patton song is good...ummmmmmm

The Bluetones/A Rough Outline: The Singles & B-Sides 95-03 (IMPORT)/I bought this for Jennifer, nuff said...actually I have seen it before, but I'm not paying $24.99 for a CD i'm not going to listen too/Ask Jennifer I don't know

Matthew Friedberger/Winter Woman-Holy Ghost Language School/I got this because I saw some Hipster analysis on it and I was waiting for it to be on the real real cheap, got it for $6, which means it was originally (if you can't do that math, get up from your chair and punch yourself in the face)/I haven't popped it in yet, i'll be honest I downloaded one track and I hated it...why did I buy this again (see "Why I bought it")

Ah, take a moment to think about an album you bought at Tower that changed your life...sniffle, sniffle

G-night!

If you are wondering what to get me for the holidays...

2006-12-15T10:28:00.000-08:00

...it's this.

"If you don't know now, you never will" - Dave Conway from Little Radio

mmmmm....The Holiday Spirit

R.I.P. Ahmet Ertegun

2006-12-14T16:05:00.000-08:00

Ahmet Ertegun is a really big name in the music business, he founded Atlantic Records and was a producer of many famous individuals. He passed away Tuesday, and it is a passing of a legend. As well, Ahmet was involved in bringing the Soccer craze to the US with the NY Cosmos. Perfect for this blog, music and football. The music business will sorely miss a person of his caliber, and you don't find many people like this anymore. See below for Yahoo coverage.

Ahmet Ertegun Dies at 83 (yahoo)

I saw this dude picking flowers at SXSW

2006-12-14T10:51:00.000-08:00

Brightblack Morning Light (website, myspace) are very unique. Let's just say I'd be suprised if these guys knew their social security numbers. They live on reservations (seriously) and I think, THINK, that they may use drugs. With names like "Shineywater" and an album that comes with stoner-vision glasses made of 100% recyclable paper, just expect the slowness.

Here is "Everybody Daylight" from their debut album on Matador Records.

Brightblack Morning Light - Everybody Daylight

Ambient Metal??? (Could That Be A Genre?)

2006-12-13T11:25:00.000-08:00

Ok quick post.

Boris (wiki) is a Doom Metal/Sludge/Heavy band from Japan.

Sunn O))) (wiki) is a Drone Metal/Doom/Heavy band from LA/NY.

Together, they are Sunn O))) and Boris and have recently released the album "ALTAR" on Southern Lord Records.

It is 6 tracks of heavy listening, the average song length is around 9 minutes, they are few vocals and effects, and PEOPLE LOVE THIS SHIT.
They do, here is proof
///Boris - Pink (2006) Pitchfork 8.7
///Boris - Akuma No Uta (2005) Pitchfork 8.2
///Boris - At Last: Feedback (2005) Pitchfork 7.7
///Sunn O))) - Black One (2006) Pitchfork 8.9
///Sunn O))) - The GrimmRobe Demos (2005) Pitchfork 8.0
///Sunn O))) - Flight Of The Behemoth (2002) Pitchfork 8.5

Sunn O))) and Boris - Akuma No Kuma

Also, Pitchfork did a track review for this song, check it out. I really dig when the horns come in...it makes me think of those horns in the Ricola commercials from back in the day.

P.S. I don't mean to link Pitchfork that much, I really despise them...but they review this shit and LOVE it?!?!

Albums/Songs of the Year COMING UP

2006-12-13T10:47:00.000-08:00

It's a coming...Who will make the cut? Suggestions?

Until then, enjoy this tune. My brother, who is studying at Yale University for Nursing (#1 in the country mind you), once said, "If I was a DJ I would play this song." So what do I do, I play this song when I DJ in homage to my brother. His musical tastes are quite different then mine, he used to practice acoustic guitar 3 hours a day and can play classical concertos front to back, but he never really got into Slayer or 2manydjs. He did once when I was a kid play me Neil Young's "Harvest" album, which was easily a landmark moment in my life, as that album is easily one of my favorites of all-time or my "Desert Island Dozen." I think I was 14 years old when he popped the cassette into his rickidy old car driving down Telegraph Ave in Berkeley...bong! Anyway, back to the tune, which is 'Werewolves Of London' by Warren Zevon from his album "Excitable Boy" released in 1978. This tune was also covered a few times, by the likes of Magnolia Electric Co., Adam Sandler, and The Grateful Dead.

Warren Zevon - Werewolves Of London

UK Band Alert: INVASION

2006-12-12T16:54:00.000-08:00

These guys are cool. UpsideDownStupidHat was the first homeboy to play this for me, and he was right, they are great.

INVASION (myspace)
///From London Town of the United Kingdom
///3 piece including 2 women (vocals and drums)
///Crazy Polish Kids!

Invasion - Red Dawn
Invasion - The Uplink Is Down

There is no future for the band, they are going to break up, but shit...this stuff rules...my buddy played drums on the recording before he quit because they are "crazy".

Enjoy, its fun.

NEW Flyer for my DJ night

2006-12-12T16:50:00.000-08:00

I think this suits me more. The artist here's name is Sam Kemp, check him out at NoiseFestival.com/samkemp and vote for him.

JUST THINK ABOUT IT

2006-12-12T11:25:00.000-08:00

New Section "JUST THINK ABOUT IT". Hey dudes and dudettes...use your brain man!

I kind of liked the Dead Kennedys, they were funny...the sound was cool...but I don't like stinky punks, and when I was in middle school...the dudes the wore the famous Dead Kennedys logo shirts were totally stinky. All Music Guide called their song 'Holiday In Cambodia,' "possibly the most successful single in the American hardcore scene." From the Dead Kennedys, easily the most influential person in the band and probably San Francisco Hardcore Scene was Jello Biafra (wiki read it). What I DO like about Jello Biafra very much is his SPOKEN WORD albums. He is a very intelligent man who has always been political and is very sharp on what's going on....oh, and he hates EVERYONE.

Quick Facts on Mr. Biafra
///Ran for Mayor of San Francisco in 1979 as a prank, platform included all business men working in downtown had to wear clown suits (haha), but also Policemen were had to be voted into service every 4 years by citizens, and no cars in the city (horrible pollution in that time). He got 3.5% of the votes and came in 4th place out of a field of 10.
///Was brought to trial by the PMRC (Parents Music Resource Center) in which they sited his music as dangerous (along with Public Enemy, 2 Live Crew, etc) and was aquitted. This was a huge reason for Tipper Gore calling for censorship of music which Jello oposed.
///Has released 8 spoken word albums since 1987 on his Alternative Tentacles label, which are all quite interseted and worth checking out (mp3 avail on Alt Tent site).

Jello is a smart man, he is radical, he is a punk, some of the stuff is out there, but he uses fact to incite his arguments. so....

JUST THINK ABOUT IT!

Instead of going all crazy about Iraq/War/Oil/Bush....this peice of his talks about how POT (marijuana) is actually a quite useful plant and how the government and corporations basically were fueld by money and racism to make growing hemp and pot illegal in the late 30's, when in reality there are many many positive things we can get from a hemp plant (besides the munchies).
P.S. I'm not a stoner at all, but this is just really interesting MANNNNNNNN!

Jello Biafra - Grow More Pot (1991)

I DJ on Friday

2006-12-12T10:56:00.000-08:00

I DJ on Thursday...woohoo

DJ Music??? JOKES

San Diego Scene Band: Grand Ole Party

2006-12-11T13:05:00.000-08:00

Grand Ole Party (myspace)

Once again, Catdirt (blog: catdirtsez.blogspot.com) is on this one first. He did their first press piece, did their first headlining show, and now the band has gone on to open up for bands like YYY's, The Elected, and more.
Quick Facts Because I Have A Day Job:
///Trio (Drums, Guitar, Bass)
///Extreme Bonus: Female Drummer who is also the only singer!
///Slated for next National band out of San Diego, CA
///Moved from San Francisco to "get the band together"
///LOCALS ONLY: Playing Friday at the Echo with The Blood Arm and MANIC

Check it out:
DEMO ALERT *don't expect Rick Rubin's magic hand
Grand Ole Party - Look Out Young Son
Grand Ole Party - INSANE
Grand Ole Party - Turn On Burn On

Subtle is really good!

2006-12-11T12:29:00.000-08:00

Okay, I am a member of Church of Amoeba Records, so I know about Dax Pierson (member of Subtle, severly injured in a tour bus accident last year, daxpierson.com). Subtle is his band, which is made up of some bay area heavy-hitters in the Indie Hip Hop scene. Doseone (Mush Records, solo artist, anticon., also in cLOUDDEAD), Jel (anticon., solo artist, i'm sure a lot more), and more research it. This year they released "For Hero: For Fool" (pitchfork tally: 8.0, review) was released on the soft this year and its REALLY GOOD.
It's "experimental" weird and very Doseone-esque (i.e. WTF is going on), but this album flows...it works...it's a band (a sextet) coming together to make it work.

Here are some tunes, let me know what you think...

Subtle - Middleclass Stomp
Subtle - The Mercury Craze *dj-able
Subtle - A Tale Of Apes, Pt. 1

If you dig this, research MUSH/Doseone/Jel/Anticon./Lex Records/cLOUDDEAD. It is a really solid scene that continues to thrive and grow.

Weekender: complete

2006-12-11T12:03:00.000-08:00

Friday = San Diego, CA
Saturday = Las Vegas, NV
Sunday = Los Angeles, CA (aka home)

Good times, I won $58 in quarter roulette at the amazingly po-dunk El Cortez which is always a pleasure as I suck at gambling. I didn't stay there though, that shit would kill you! I was at the Golden Nugget, pretty okay. Myself, catdirt, and "catdirt wife" accompanied Fifty On Their Heels (winner Best Punk Band at the 2006 San Diego Music Awards) to Las Vegas for their show with Ratatat (note: they are mean hipsters). They also played the "Golden Hill Block Party Rerun" at the Casbah on friday which was awesome. Definitely check out CatDirtSez for a full professional recap.

Now I will drop some music.

WTF?

2006-12-07T12:15:00.000-08:00

What the fuck?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/6217514.stm

Old School Pt. 2: Lost Gem of Houston

2006-12-06T23:10:00.000-08:00

Right now I was digging through my old mixes, and I found this little sucker. It was a hit perhaps back in like '98, but a Houston Hustler named Lil' Troy wiki. It goes by the name of "I Wanna Be A Baller". Dig it, its wonderful.

Lil' Troy - Wanna Be A Baller

Man, I can't wait to tell my kids about, back in my day we used to do mixtapes and burn mix cds....they are just going to go to some website that has every MP3 and a story behind it....if you think about it...it's rather ingenious. Imagine researching band being able to download Warren Zevon's "Warewolves In London" and listen why they read the story.

A Band That Never Was

2006-12-06T17:59:00.000-08:00

A while back my friend told me of a band she knew in Seattle, WA called The Bats of Belfry (myspace/bandsite). I went to the myspace and just loved the tunes. It was like a 60's Stoner Jam with enough sensibility to make it big in this day and age. A few weeks after talking to them a bit about joining the sac (my day job SESAC), the songs vanished without a trace, and so did correspondance. Oh well, bummer. Later on they posted a coded bulletin that pretty much stated the band had split, TOTAL BUMMER. Fuckin bands, this year a ton of bands have split up, especially talented ones who write good songs. And writing good songs is easily the hardest part of being in a band, wtf?!?! I think it has to do with the generation these kids in new bands come from, something wrong with it. Too volatile and ALL scenes are dead in the water, nobody belongs to anybody. Junky kids don't have creativity anymore, the market is flooded with art school grads, and perhaps life is just easier these days. Well, that is my rant, the good think about The Bats Of Belfry is even in their death, I got all their 3 songs, woo hoo. I'll def spin them on my Little Radio soiree upon it's arrival.

The Bats Of Belfry - Kremlins *the track
The Bats Of Belfry - Tumble Down
The Bats Of Belfry - Marigold

hEL-P the word

2006-12-06T13:49:00.000-08:00

Wowsa, mark my words. El-P's 2007 release "I'll Sleep When You're Dead" is an absolute masterpiece and will top the "Best of 2007" lists. He worked with Trent Reznor, Cat Power, TV on the Radio, The Mars Volta, and a few other guys I forgot about when he told me. By far my favorite tracks (which I don't want to name as this album is so far out), are the TV On The Radio track the Trent Reznor track. Pressing play is opening up pandora's box and it doesn't dissapoint. I am not a big fan of the "back-pack" rap, or white rap scene whatever, but I respect producers and I like lyrics (especially political ones). El-P delivers, he must have been frustrated with music, life, and the state of living in america because this album is fierce. A kind of fiercness that only comes from a lovely stressor or opressor. Once I can, I will post "the single" or better yet, once my Little Radio show starts up (def soon), I'll try and have El-P give me some words of his own.

-------ON AN INDUSTRY NOTE-------
This is a promo copy which I got from my NY counterpart, Ms. Jamie Dominguez (boo yah, myspace her) and every like 2 minutes the recording level goes down and it says "This Promo Copy Belongs to Jamie Dominguez" WOW, the future, I mean nobody is going to leak that shit...and if they do it will piss everybody off because it chimes in, but you get the gyst of the album. And before you ask, I got it because she is NY, and I am LA, together we are the SESAC heat for the hip shit and are really one person.

-------ON ANOTHER NOTE-------
My Friend Cesar Beat Cancer after 7 Months, that is just amazing. He kept a positive attitude and waved goodbye to the parasite. Myself and El-P congratulate you.

Kiss The Skull

2006-12-05T11:52:00.000-08:00

'I should be able to kill somebody if they fuck with me' - DANZIG

In case you don't know, I LOVE Danzig (not heart, love). Misfits killed it, Samhain whatever (Brian Baker rules), and Danzig solo is lucifer's gift to my ears. I have seen Danzig tons of times, and everytime I show up late (until right before he goes on), I kick smelly punks out of my seats (he plays sitters now), and I am wearing a white shirt (whilst everyone else wears black). Everybody stares at me and then he goes on and I belt out every single lyric (even from his new shit...yeah, I love him). He always opens with "Skincarver," off his last album Circle of Snakes which I believe was recorded in his backyard (production quality = 0). You have to love the subject matter though, and the songs are solid as hell.
I have stood by Danzig for years, everybody always sends me the clip oh him getting knocked out in AZ, and it pains me. His comment (above) was stated after the truck with all his equiptment was stolen after his Wiltern show last week, bummer. Danzig is one person I have always wanted to me, but never wanted to meet. I say that because whenever I speak to people who know him or are connected to him they tell how he is the biggest asshole in the world. That shit bums me out, I wish he could take the piss out of himself, but he can't. I saw him walking into Rob Zombie, and I had my camera, but he was walking way to fast with a half-clothed asian woman that had about 2 feet on him...marvelous. I have driven by his house (Rodney and Hillhurst) at least 50 times and I will continue to whenever I'm in Los Feliz hoping to catch a glimpse of greatness. Always a good time, always Danzig.

That is all, I'm not going to bother with an MP3, no one will listen anyway...unless maybe it's "Mother". Danzig is forever in my heart.

Love,
Josh

Who Doesn't Want This Shit For The Holidays???

On the subject of weird toys... what the fuck is up with this

Red is Peter as Peter is Red

2006-12-05T09:29:00.000-08:00

Red Hunter aka Peter and the Wolf (myspace) is a nomad. He sort of resides in Austin, TX...he has family in San Diego, CA...and he is on his way to living in Los Angeles for a month when he records ANOTHER new album. I say ANOTHER, because he just finished Lightness, which came out Oct 31st on Workers Institute. The guy doesn't stop and he plays by his own rules (I like saying that). He tours at least half of the year, and will be coming to a town near you if you pay attention. Check it out...

Peter And The Wolf - The Apple Tree
Peter And The Wolf - The Bonsai Tree
Peter And The Wolf - Safe Travels

Creeeeeeeeepy!

2006-12-04T10:49:00.000-08:00

This song had its splash back in 2002, sadly only in the UK. And what is even more sad is that nothing ever compared to this song from the artist. Perhaps a young man stumbled onto something for a minute, but decided to go a different route that eventually shortened his career. I'm talking about Martin Grech, and his song (and album) "Open Heart Zoo". It sounds like a dark carnival and gained success when Lexus released their creepy new SUV back in the day and used the tune in the UK. A really good song which he wrote and released when he was 17 or 18 years old which I present to you on a fine Monday morning. Maybe this was a bigger hit in the UK than I make it sound, but back in 2002 there wasn't any bloggers or shit like that, so there was still some mystery of what's going on in jolly old England. Enjoy.

Martin Grech - Open Heart Zoo

Buzzer

2006-12-01T11:38:00.000-08:00

Here is a buzzing track. Hard to find online, but Palms Out Sounds was nice enough to bring it to their Sunday Remix post.

DJ Mehdi is making waves, Ed Bangers, French, etc. Kavinsky is still my number 1, but the french electro scene has really offered up some winners this year. Justice, SebastiAn, and i guess Mr Oizo (although i'm not that impressed yet)....I guess Simian Mobile Disco counts as well, although they aren't French, but did "We Are Your Friends" mix with Justice out of France. Also in France, you must never forget the amazing Sebastian Tellier, perhaps I will post a few pictures of him from my trip over to the U. Kizzle once I figure out how to get them off my camera.

DJ Mehdi Remix of "In Case We Die" by Architecture in Helsinki

It's definitely a winner...when is Kavinsky going to start dropping the remix love?

Learn about France

Who doesn't love: STONER METAL

2006-12-01T11:01:00.000-08:00

So as I was browsing IODA Promonet yesterday, I stumbled upon the Tee Pee records label site which offers up some good stuff. Whilst browsing I found a "download only" track from the bay areas incredible SLEEP! It's a single for Dopesmoker.Check the wiki for a good write-up. After Sleep went to sleep, Matt Pike formed HIGH ON FIRE, who's 2005 release "Blessed Black Wings" made it all the way to #2 on my Top 20 of 2005 list, yeah, it's that good. Steve Albini produced it, and even though I didn't have a metal year, it was at a level that most artists, regardless of genre, can't compete with.

Download "Dopesmoker" (mp3)
from "Dopesmoker"
by Sleep
Tee Pee Records

Buy at iTunes Music Store

Down the road, in Palm Desert, CA another Stoner Metal scene developed from the dusty dry heat that is ever abundant in the land. I'm sure everybody is familiar with Queens of the Stone Age, but before there was QOTSA, there was KYUSS. Hit the wiki. Here are the first 2 tracks from "Blues From The Red Sun" which I used to always put on when I was cleaning my old apartment for some reason?!?!

Kyuss - Thumb
Kyuss - Green Machine

Also check out, the first Queens of the Stone Age album, High On Fire - Blessed Black Wings (obv), and get ripped and forget what you just listened to.

One IODA: Tommy Guerrero

2006-11-30T13:09:00.000-08:00

So here is my first grab from IODA comes from the Quannum Projects label out of SF. I like this Tommy G character, NOTE: he is not the wrestler that died of an OD.

Download "War No More" (mp3)
from "From the Soil To the Soul"
by Tommy Guerrero
Quannum Projects

Download "Salve" (mp3)
from "From the Soil To the Soul"
by Tommy Guerrero
Quannum Projects

Buy at iTunes Music Store

Legend: Townes Van Zandt

2006-11-30T10:32:00.000-08:00

Townes Van Zandt (March 7, 1944 - January 1, 1997)

I first discovered Townes about 3 years ago when I was living in New York. His haunting version of "Dead Flowers" (which the Stones made famous) was featured in the Big Lebowski and on the soundtrack, an absolute winner. From there I wanted to hear more. I remember reading about him as a dead singer-songwriter and not hearing about an untimely demise which is usually showcased. For some reason the stuff I had read neglected to reveal Townes' battle with alcoholism and drug usage that certainly took years off his life. A wonderful documentary showcases Townes' contributions to music entitled "Be Here To Love Me" released last year by Palm Pictures. Go pick it up, or I comment and I can send you a screener copy I have. It really puts it all together nicely, and it's not one of those documentaries that is painful to watch unless you are an uber-fan.

Townes style is really basic, just a poet with an acoustic guitar, almost always very low key, small venues, and a true road dog. He is a true cult hero and a staple in the Austin music scene (with some great Austin City Limits performances). His only real "hit" was Pancho and Lefty, and became a hit because it was recorded by Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard in 1983. Many artists covered his songs to their benefit, but Townes just did his own thing, I don't think it bothered him, and I'm sure he liked the extra money.

Here a few tracks off of "Live At The Old Quarter" recorded live in Houston on July of 1973, which I really recommend picking up. Really good when you are driving up the 5 freeway and you have hours of open road.

Townes Van Zandt - Waiting 'round To Die
Townes Van Zandt - Pancho And Lefty
Townes Van Zandt - Tecumseh Valley
Townes Van Zandt - Tower Song

Knowledge always gets the upper hand

2006-11-29T16:08:00.000-08:00

Action: I just went to the newly opened Santa Monica Public Library for the first time to check out some books. Note: I haven't checked out a book since I was 7 years old. "they didn't have A.D.D. when I was growing up" - Robbie Williams

Reaction: I gave them my Drivers Liscense, they gave me a new library card. I went to the computer, I found the 2 books I wanted. I brought them downstairs for check out, and upon placing them on the counter, they were automatically scanned, and I swiped my ID and I got a reciept in less than 3 seconds. I even added another book because the section was exactly what I was interested in.

Realization: Knowledge gets all the perks. You don't see new developments in fucking graffiti writing or consumption of calories. The library is the place to be, they get $$$ like its going out of style, and they help everybody, even the stinky homeless. I get to say, Back in my day, the Santa Monica Public Library was all brown and wooden and it had those killer steps that little kids can fall through, and it was dark...that is what I remember most...the darkness. Defintely made in the 70's and reminded me of when I was also 7 years old walking around UCLA with my mom before they did that maximum overhaul. Which once again..Knowledge equals funding. Books definitely get precident over music...and rightfully so, check out my spelling and grammar! My dad used to say, if you want a book i'll buy it for you, consider it free, as long as you read it. I was like (and I still am like) shit dad, you should have bought me every classic CD I ever asked for, that is the knowledge I go for! That is what I am going to do for my kids...tell them any CD (or digi file, whatever) they want that came out before they were born I will buy for them. Ain't that some shit. Perhaps my father was right, but I definitely went towards the music thing...barely got out of high school on the book thing. Ah fuck it, I'm blabbing to Scott Pactor and Amy Schmalz, my 2 dedicated readers (an only ones I assume...correct me if I'm wrong in the comments sheisters).

As the year winds down, I guess I strive to get some Knowledge in before the clock strikes 2007. 2007 is going to be my year 2006 was good mind you but 2007, fuckin watch out.

Bonus...why not a sad song for you.
Darci Cash - God, You Were Amazing
myspace
love these locals...

I got into IODA promonet too, so tomorrow I will search for something good to post.

Remember Duckhunt?

2006-11-29T11:30:00.000-08:00

GOOSE
myspace
%are from Belgium
%sound like Soulwax
%are 4 young men (one of whom looks like a lady)
%will not be coming to th US anytime soon
%I saw at Fabric and got my electro on

Goose - Black Gloves
Goose - Slow Down *this songs chorus reminds me of that band Millionaire who are also from Belgium, check out their first album...great stuff

I visited Belgium for 1 hour when I was younger, all I remember were pretty woman (fyi, I had just come from London so huge improvement) with like chocolatey skintone, and some great architecture. This was all on the way to Amsterdam, and I was bummed I didn't spend longer in Belgium...next time

Yodel-o-eee-o-eee-o

2006-11-29T10:21:00.000-08:00

Okay, Produced by Jim O'Rourke (Wilco - A Ghost Is Born, Sonic Youth), Engineered by Steve Albini (Metal! Shellac!...schwing!), String Arrangements by Van Dyke Parks (SMiLE - Beach Boys/Brian Wilson), plus backing Vocals by Bill Callahan (Smog). Upon finding this information I said, "God Damn, I could sing on this album and it would be amazing." I am in fact talking about Joanna Newsom's Ys album, which was released on Drag City last week. I was trying to find this record (without driving to Amoeba) and had no luck, so I cheated and went to Hype Machine, where all the 5 tracks can be found in a quick minute (proof). It is an Opus, and I had all intention on buying the hardcopy, UNTIL........I listened to it!

I DON'T GET IT???

WTF? I admit at times I am swayed by the big rubber Pitchfork dicks(review 9.4), I even bought that Kallikak Family shit which they said was like Eno and made "Best New Music," and that shit was horrible! Most of the time I disagree, but if they give an album an amazing review then I usually check it out. Other times I disagree, I really dig the Damien Rice album, which they gave a 1.9...sorry it didn't come out on Arts+Crafts you assholes. The song "9 Crimes" earns that album at least a 6.0 in my book.

Well back to the subject....I don't hate the Joanna Newsom album, I like everything up to the point where she opens her mouth, kind of like the girls I went to college with. The lyrical content reminds me of the stoners in Brightblack Morning Light, and her vocals sometimes go into a bad Bjork moment, or in a state where you feel a yodel coming on. The album is quite unique, flawless instrumentation and production, but not my cup of tea.

I'm not going to bother posting an MP3, go to the Hype Machine link above and delve into the nonsense. Here is the Drag City Album Info page to guide you in your thievery.(link)

Gloating In The Fantasy World

2006-11-28T17:03:00.000-08:00

The Piece of the Pie Fantasy League I created hasn't quite been the drama it could have been (as only a few people pay attention), but I just want to pat myself on the back about one thing. Micah Richards! Since day 1, I have had this homeboy on my team and lord has it paid off. He currently sits at #10 for points in the Defender catagory. Not shabby at all, especially seeing as this is his first year as a solid in the starting XI for the glorious Manchester City Football Club. We share the same birthday (June 24th), but the difference is this guy just turned 18 years old. Richards burst on the scene last season when he was brought during injury time in the FA Cup vs Aston Villa, a goal down, and he headed in the equaliser (see below). After that match he gained some notoriety when he was asked how it felt, the first words out of his mouth were "fucking hell". He got into a bit of trouble for that.
I had the pleasure of seeing him in person when I was in Manchester, for the Manchester City V Middlesborough clash of the north. He played a solid game, as he has been doing so this whole season. As well, an injury time equalising volley versus Everton a few weeks back brought a tear to my eye...my boy is growing up. He recently made the starting XI for England for their bout with the Netherlands, and became the Youngest defender to start in England history (previously held by Rio Ferdinand). Bravo, even you non-football fans will soon be hearing his name. The best decision in my fantasy career!

The Leaning Tower of Tower

2006-11-28T16:12:00.000-08:00

Tower Records is going under, bummer. Tower was known as a "big-indie" store, kind of like Matador Records is a "big-indie label." At Tower you would get all those super Imports for $30, or you could always find that Richard Hell album that nobody wanted for $17.99. The worst thing about Tower going under is that there is one a block away from my office, and I am a CD addict, I buy on average 500 CD's a year i'm sure of it, and BUY, not get for free...I get about 700 CD's a year for free (lots I give away of bring to Amoeba for trade-in value). If you don't support the business you work in, then don't expect it to be around much longer. I buy tons of New Releases as well, because lord knows Soundscan decides careers.

Today the special was %60 off...hot damn, that is a lot of money, take a CD price, cut it in half, and then some! There is one artist that I never really got into, regardless of hype/blog love/pitchfork reviews/press, and that artist is CALEXICO. For some reason the only thing that comes to mind when I think of them is a bunch of Mexicans playing shit like "Dark Night" by the Blasters. ***If I could find this song to post I would, it was featured in From Dusk Til Dawn and its amazing, look it up*** I think of Mexicans because Calexico, CA is on the Califonia/Mexico border hence CALEXICO...California-Mexico, but I'm sure you got that.

Calexico, CA funfacts:
*The City is ranked 3rd in the Nation in Teen Pregnancies with 17.3% of Women aged 14-18
*122 Miles East of San Diego, CA on the Califonia-Mexican Border
*The city itself takes up about 6.2 square miles
*Founded in 1900 as a tent city, but now has a population of around 27,000 people.
all the careless info you could ever want via wiki

Well, anyway, Calexico aren't even Californians, they are from Arizona, and they have a pretty cool sound. Sometimes they play off the Mexicali vibe, and I love that shit. Like Union Station back in the day, California is the best state in the west. The band has released a bunch of albums since '97, and the songs I like by them are the atmospheric ones, like this one from their latest effort "Garden Ruin". This is the last track on the album, which always counts as an excuse to get crazy.

Calexico - All Systems Red

Vaya Con Dios!

A Sleeper

2006-11-28T11:28:00.000-08:00

Indie labels put out some good records that really never meet their potential due to indie label constraints. I think this is one of them. It had its "blog buzz" for a while, and some great UK press, but it faded away as usual. As the year winds down, these 2 tracks stick with me. Think Fleetwood Mac with a feather in your cap..it's Denton, TX's MIDLAKE.

Midlake - Roscoe
Midlake - Head Home

2 good tunes that are indie-emo. The album is Trials Of Van Occupanther, and it came out on Bella Union earlier this year. Buy it at insound. A great stocking stuffer.

A Classic

2006-11-27T22:40:00.000-08:00

Sometimes you hear a song over and over and it never leaves your mind. For me, it's songs like "Where Is My Mind?" by The Pixies, "Sway" by The Rolling Stones, or "The Man In Me" by Bob Dylan. Whenever the first note of that song comes on, weightlessness. THEN, there are other songs...songs that are winners, but you forget about them. You hear the opening note and wham, you now are waiting for a voice or a verse to bring it all home.
This is one of those songs...
Over the weekend I was in New York, and I found myself at a bar called Great Lakes in Brooklyn, which played exceptionally good music. Lots of Joy Division/New Order, Misfits, and other winners. After a few drinks, and hours chatting it up, this tune came on.

Neil Young - Like A Hurricane

Relax. Enjoy. 8+ Minutes of a great sounding guitar and some great guitar work. Probably really good to get stoned too.

Contender for Song Of The Year

2006-11-27T18:00:00.000-08:00

Seriously, I'm busy. Not kinda busy, like I have a million things to do and I'm going to cry busy. I want to be a blogger, like Cat Dirt Sez, but shit man, I'M DYING HERE.

Every year for the past few I always put together a solid "Best of (Year)" I do top albums, I do top singles, I do top movies, and I have a nice little guess for what is going to be huge for the next year. Well I have been thinking about it as the year winds down, and this song is certainly up there as a absolute fucking winner.

I have posted about them before, and I will post about them again...
THE WHIP
///are from Manchester, UK
///feature members of Nylon Pylon (defunct)
///are what you get if Soulwax knocked up New Order
///are slated to play my SESAC SXSW party/showcase
///have a great live show, and are extremely nice guys

The Single is "Trash" and it is in my top songs for the year for sure, if not #1
The Whip - Trash

This is a great dance tune. I have dropped it when I have DJ'd and people don't miss a beat and keep their asses moving. It's just a great feeling. I am a fan of the beat, and this keeps it going. I could listen to this shit all day and all night and would never complain.

That is me, you are you...i'm open to your pesimistic comments.

New Band: Castledoor

2006-11-14T11:32:00.000-08:00

Last night I ventured over to probably my least favorite LA venue that I attend frequently, The Knitting Factory. It's in a strip mall which is finally being redone, hopefully something cool like a Swingers cafe will pop up or just not The Hollywood Free Museum. I went to represent for my friends at Tin Panda. The line-up was The Parsons RedHeads, The Stevenson Ranch Davidians, The Petes, Castledoor, and The Little Heroes...not bad for a Monday night residency deal.

A band caught my ears, called Castledoor (www.myspace.com/castledoormusic). They looked too hip for their own good, including a female keyboardist/stand-arounder that could have been Brian Jones' girlfriend. But what caught me was a song called "Magnetic Forces" that was really quite good. The singer is good, solid voice, good stage action, and looks the part. Check it out, more new music to come, and a solid recap of my travels pending I have 2 hours of freetime.

Castledoor - Magnetic Forces

Back And Lively

2006-11-13T14:48:00.000-08:00

Back from my 3 week trip to LONDON/MANCHESTER/NEW YORK/NASHVILLE.

Brought back a good amount of music and got to see a few great bands along the way. I will be updating you all very soon.

Honda Player Of The Year: Clint Dempsey

2006-10-05T10:42:00.000-07:00

"I Want to go to Europe, and I want to go NOW!" - Clint Dempsey's acceptance speech.

It's about time. Great player, and the Honda Player of the Year is for excellence in the National Team, whatever. Clint was coming off the bench basically, but scored THE goal for the US in the World Cup. Send him to Europe so the US can develop.

Okay...Good Video...Good Band...Not Too Hipster Yet

2006-09-30T07:59:00.000-07:00

This shit is funny, it's an interesting idea, and its kinda hot. I am stoked to see SMD in London in just a few weeks.

Scott, I know you read this...next FOTH video?

Good Track

2006-09-29T11:53:00.000-07:00

This dude is interesting...Lupe Fiasco. The stuff they are pushing over here (US) "Kick Push" is whatever, but the track they pushing in the UK is tons better. It's below.

Lupe Fiasco - Daydreamin'(feat. Jill Scott) ...as well there is an I Monster sample (the hook) which is pretty funny

Also exciting, this shit:

Blogger Non-Exclusive: Junior Boys

2006-09-29T11:01:00.000-07:00

Everybody is talking about Junior Boys, yada yada yada. I hate Pitchfork and they looooooved the single "In The Morning." I did not like the first album the Boys did, and so I was reluctant to pick this one up. Alas, it was the listening station that got me, and now this is easily in the top 20 of the year. It is a good one, very mellow, and worth checking out. Everybody seems to be really into this, and sadly it makes sense. Nothing astonishing here, but check it out, its cute.

Junior Boys - Count Souvenirs

Junior Boys - In The Morning

Old School

2006-09-25T23:34:00.000-07:00

Remember this? Pretty funny.

Cry like a little bitch...

2006-09-25T20:29:00.000-07:00

Damien Rice is Irish and makes people sad...

He has a new single, and it is impacting BBC Radio now...

Damien Rice - 9 Crimes

It's DJ Shadow Motherfucka!

2006-09-25T16:34:00.000-07:00

So last night, I went down to the Avalon in Hollywood to see an acquaintance, mr. DJ Shadow. I have been a DJ Shadow fan for a very very long time. When I say fan, I really mean "super-fan" as The Private Press is easily one of my favorite albums of all-time, and "Blood On The Motorway" is easily one of my favorite tracks of all-time. I have been lucky enough to work with him and hang out with him, and there is no other musician I respect more than him. When "The Outsider" (new album, out now) was being prepared, I was a little nervous, I like Shadow for his electonic/rock type aspects, not too keen on the hip-hop side. But I had faith, when you are as talented as DJ Shadow you could do a country record and it would still be "shadow-esque." And "shadow-esque" is something really special. So I have been living with "The Outsider" now for some time, and reading the confusion on the internet, and even Mr. Shadow himself spoke out the change in direction. I was confused, I wasn't upset or nothing, but it was definitely not a record that melted me upon hearing it. One track did and it's "This Time (I'm Gonna Try It My Way)." So upon going to this show last night, it was mainly out of faith, I wouldn't miss it for the world, but I wasn't looking forward to it. I just didn't want to see people take the new stuff the wrong way, or have a weird vibe about it. I arrived, watched Lateef the Truth Speaker do a hip-hop set, and was a little nervous for one of my idols to come on. Alas, the clock strikes 10:45 and the beginning notes of "The Outsider Intro," come in and I get pumped. It is a great fucking intro, no doubt. Shadow came on to a roaring applause and started out with a classic, phew. The set was relentless...Shadow mixed his songs perfectly, and formed medleys that were out of his world. By the last song at 12:30 I was bummed to go. It was a mix of Radiohead "The Gloaming" (Remix) that was never officially released, UNKLE's "Nursery Rhyme" (feat. Badly Drawn Boy) and UNKLE's "Rabbit In The Headlights" (feat. Thom Yorke), it was just too fucking creative for my little brain. Another hightlight that I have to mention is the amazing track of the new album, "Seein' Thangs" (feat. David Banner), it is a great track and the video that accompanied it (shown via 9 screens on the stage) was pretty hectic, and I loved that Banner was decked out with a sweet Raiders hat, gotta love the bay.

Reflecting back on the night, one thing sticks out. The shitty opus that is Pitchfork Media said "The Outsider does exactly what the titles says; alienates everybody who ever was a DJ Shadow fan." Pretty fucking ruthless. At one of the few intermissions in the show, where Shadow gathers his thoughts and changes tempo, he spoke about his records. He stated that a lot of people really love Endtroducing, and others really love The Private Press. Just like some of the audience came for Hip Hop, and others came for Rock, but what was best is he said, "if you are a fan of mine, you will recognize the quality of anything new." This did not sound cocky, he was just saying that if you are a true fan of his music, or anybody elses music who is an amazing artist, you know that whatever is put out, if the respect is there, then it will be quality. Shadow respects his music, everything is fine-tuned and put together with perfection in mind.

DJ Shadow = Quality

And for anybody that hates on "The Outsider," well that is fine, you are entitled, but you need to know that DJ Shadow is at the top of his genre, whatever that genre happens to be at the time.

Shadow doesn't like bootlegs or "stealing" music, so due to that, no track for this post, go buy the new album please...please...PLEASE.

My New Favorite Artist

2006-09-21T15:52:00.000-07:00

KAVINSKY hails from Paris, France, and is a mix of the Original Nintendo and Miami Vice. The backstory is that Kavinsky was killed in 1986 in a car accident and now is back to life and DJing clubs and shit. Interesting. What is even better, is when I am in the UK for business in October, he is DJing at FABRIC (my all-time favorite club that I have never been too) along with Simian Mobile Disco, The Whip (Manchester, UK), Sunshine Underground, Goose, Circulus, and many more. Make sure to check the video and 2 MP3's are below.

Kavinsky - Testarossa Autodrive
Kavinsky - Testarossa Nightdrive

FUCK YEAH!

2006-09-19T15:18:00.000-07:00

I got some very good news this evening, the best band out of San Diego Fifty On Their Heels won the SD Weekly Award for Best Punk Album!!!! (more info)

Past winners include Hot Snakes (2005), Blink 182 (many times), No Knife (1999), and Unwritten Law (1998). Not too shabby and especially great as that they are the first release on a new indie in SD called Cat Dirt Records. (label blog) They beat out Some Girls (Deathwish/Epitaph Records) and GoGoGo Airheart (GSL Records) who have definitely been around the scene for a while and toured the US many times over. It is really great that a young band with only an EP out won a big award chosen by the San Diego Music Scene big-ups. As well, they are talks that they will record up in LA with a friend, so that will be remarkable. To me, they are a mix of T.S.O.L. and Gang Of Four...and I have stressed that I hope they add the Theme to A Clockwork Orange into the mix as well, I think that would be brutal.

Fifty On Their Heels - A Good Friend

"You Know I Love You, Take Off Your Clothes"

2006-09-19T10:10:00.000-07:00

So every now and then a song comes along that is catchy as all hell and has an infectious repeated phrase that you fall in love with. Enter: The Pigeon Detectives from Leeds, UK. I heard this song a while back and snickered, but didn't think much of it until last night on the final installment of Steve Lamacq Live show for BBC Radio 1. Sad times, I really like Mr. Lamacq and as he will still be on the BBC, his "sessions" show is now bye-bye. This was the one of the last tracks he played, recorded live on June 26th, 2006. Check it out, it is a good session, the album version is good too.

The Pigeon Detectives - You Know I Love You (Lamacq Live Session)

I'm Sirius

2006-09-15T12:09:00.000-07:00

So I just got Sirius Satellite Radio and after 4 days of tech problems, I finally got the bloody thing working. So far this morning I listed to 3 hours of Football Chatter (thank god for that), and some BBC radio 1. Other than that, I popped into the "College/Alt Rock" channel and although heard a little Jose Gonzales "Lovestain" it turned into some shit I never want to listen to ever in my life. And then the Watson Twins followed...bummer. Anyway, although it doesn't work at my apartment, due to shite reception, my office seems to hold up okay with only a few blips here and there. The phrase "Acquiring Signal" is my arch nemisis.

Too lazy to post about music so head over to Upside Down Stupid Hat for some good tunes I approve of. (Look to the right for the link). Bat For Lashes is amazing, absolutely brilliant as Charlie would say.

Here are some links of stuff I'm working with:
The Zico Chain (London, UK)
Goes Cube (New York, NY)
Favourite Sons (Brooklyn, NY

As well, I bought the 4CD UNKLE Box Set at Amoeba, and my lord it's good looking. Haven't gotten through it yet, as it is all mainly Reign remixes, but sexy hot pink packaging. Buy it, it's under 20 bucks. As well James Lavelle is spinning in LA next week, that should be nice, especially because it is on the same block as my office!

Enjoy le weekend.

This Blog is Not Dead

2006-09-06T15:50:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I had a vacation, whatever. I have been traveling a ton and I have just returned from my final trip of 3 in the last 3 weeks I will post one song that is amazing. It comes from the new Bob Dylan album, and it is the last track on the album called Ain't Talkin'. Go buy this album, 192,000 already have and they cannot be wrong. I say this as any artist who has released 44 albums is doing something right. Now if 192,000 people buy the new JT well they are wrong, he only has 2 albums...see how showed my work.

Enjoy.

Bob Dylan - Ain't Talkin'

Indie: Jim Noir

2006-08-10T17:09:00.000-07:00

You know who I am talking about...
You may not know, but you if you have seen the Nike (+10) Campaign around the world cup with the little boy picking his all-star team for a pickup game featuring Michel Platini, Franz Beckenbauer, Zidane, Robben, Lampard, Kahn, Defoe, Ballack, and more then you have heard the song. "...If you don't give my football back i'm gonna get my dad on you..." Anyway, the guys name is Jim Noir, and his album is actually quite good. It came out on Barsuk in the US last week and I really recommend it. It's a poppy "happy" Beach Boys/Beatles style, self produced deal.

Eanie Meany (the football jingle)
Computer Song
My Patch

Robbie

2006-08-10T17:05:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't love this man?

He has a new swanky single, it is very different...check it.

~~Robbie Williams - Rudebox~~ expired

Update:The Video Below.