LINK:
Monday, November 23, 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Forest Fire: Survival
The songs tend to be on the short side but their sound is full. Leaning on elements of folk, these guys create a record full of catchy tunes that sound warm and full. Plus they offer the record for free which is always nice.
Link:
James Brown: Cold Sweat
This is an example of what The Godfather of Soul showing you all what he did so well. Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis wrote this song for Mr. Brown. This is what Mr. Ellis said regarding how the song "Cold Sweat" evolved:
After one of the shows, one night somewhere, James called me into the dressing room and grunted a bass line of a rhythmic thing, which turned out to be "Cold Sweat." I was very much influenced by Miles Davis and had been listening to "So What" six or seven years earlier and that crept into the making of "Cold Sweat." You could call it subliminal, but the horn line is based on Miles Davis' "So What." I wrote that on the bus between New York and Cincinnati. The next day we pulled up in front of King Records studio, got off the bus, got in the studio, set up, and I went over the rhythm with the band. By the time we got the groove going, James showed up, added a few touches--changed the guitar part, which made it real funky--had the drummer do something different. He was a genius at it. Between the two of us, we put it together one afternoon. He put the lyrics on it. The band set up in a semicircle in the studio with one microphone. It was recorded live in the studio. One take. It was like a performance. We didn't do overdubbing.
Link:
Friday, November 6, 2009
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Fool's Gold (self-titled)
CMJ wrapped up in New York the other week and this band was on my radar in who I wanted to check out. Unfortunately I missed them (and a ton of other bands I wanted to see) because before I knew it they had already left town. Coming out of LA, I wanted to see what these guys sounded like live on stage since their album has a light, breezy sound. They have a combination (to me) of David Byrne (or the Naked era of Talking Heads), a white afrobeat band and a much cooler cousin of Vampire Weekend. I think the album is totally catchy and I have to give it to these guys for delivering a wonderful, upbeat album to groove to. I think they sing in Hebrew as well. The only problem is I don't know Hebrew so I cannot confirm that. So you will find out for yourself if they do. Maybe you will know if they do.
Beck: One Foot in the Grave (deluxe.)
This wonderful album, to celebrate the 15th anniversary of its release, now has several unreleased tracks, b-sides, unheard gems from an era that is my favorite when it comes to this amazingly talented Artist. If you have not heard this album or even if you have not heard it in quite some time, you will enjoy this. There are so many brilliant tracks on this record and the for it to become deluxe with a dozen plus additional tracks makes this record pretty close to perfect.
1. “He's A Mighty Good Leader”
2. “Sleeping Bag”
3. “I Get Lonesome”
4. “Burnt Orange Peel”
5. “Cyanide Breath Mint”
6. “See Water”
7. “Ziplock Bag”
8. “Hollow Log”
9. “Forcefield”
10. “Fourteen Rivers Fourteen Floods”
11. “Asshole”
12. “I've Seen The Land Beyond”
13. “Outcome”
14. “Girl Dreams”
15. “Painted Eyelids”
16. “Atmospheric Conditions”
17. “It's All In Your Mind” *
18. “Whiskey Can Can” *
19. “Mattress” *
20. “Woe Unto Me” *
21. “Teenage Wastebasket” (Acoustic) *
22. “Favorite Nerve” *
23. “Piss On The Floor” *
24. “Your Love Is Weird” *
25. “Close to God” *
26. “Sweet Satan” *
27. “Blake Lake Morning” *
28. “Axe Ex” *
29. “Teenage Wastebasket” (Electric)
30. “One Foot in the Grave” *
31. “Feather in Your Cap” *
32. “I Get Lonesome” *
* Bonus Track
Link:
Sunday, November 1, 2009
The Shrine Presents Afrobeat
Going through a box of old music I have not listen to in some time, I was reminded of some gems I thought I would pass along to any who are interested. This is a collection of various artists put together by the DJs at The Shrine, Fela Kuti's nightclub, offering a wide range of African and African-influenced music.
LINK:
At Home with the Groovebox
I was cleaning out a closet and came across a box of old compact discs. It brought me down a musical memory lane. This record, put out on Grand Royal, was a favorite of mine back in the day. I had so many of my favorite artists on one record, all using the basic Roland Groovebox to make their music. Its a strange album but I have to say its quite fun to listen. There are artists on here you are familiar with but the songs they made may sound a bit off from what you may associate with them. This is one of those records worth checking out and rolling the old musical dice.
LINK:
Veruca Salt: American Thighs
This record was in the box of old albums I had not touched in some time. I was excited when I saw this record, to be honest, I really enjoyed it when it came out. It is a record of super catchy, rock songs from that time in the 90's when alternative music was everywhere and it really was not alternative but just rock music.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Dead Man's Bones
They are playing in New York City on October 15. I am trying to make their show and so should you. I do not know what to expect but it seems promising since the album is quite strong. I am only becoming familiar with the record but its certainly has all the right pieces to get stuck ringing inside your head.
LINK:
James Brown: There It Is
In college I had a radio program that featured funk and soul songs as well as some afrobeat. At this time this type of music felt right to listen to all the time. It made me feel happy. When the show started I could not think of a proper name. What inspired me to have this type of radio program was listening to "Across 100th Street" in New York that played similar music. Through out their program, the played so many songs with very little input from the DJ. When the DJ did come on the air, they would announce the artists that played in the last block and then what song was coming up next. At the end they would say we will "keep the speaking to the minimum and the music to the maximum". That struck a cord with me so when I finally decided to pick a name for my radio program I took the name of one of my favorite James Brown songs, one that is on this album, "Talking Loud & Saying Nothing". It truly is a wonderful song.
LINK:
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
