March 2nd is the lucky day! Click here to check out AND DOWNLOAD (for free!) their new track “Shameless” featuring Bryan Ferry!
R.I.P. Jay Reatard
Jay Reatard “I’m Watching You” live @ Criminal Records
On Wednesday, the world lost a great alt punk musician way before his time. Jimmy Lee Lindsey Jr. (aka Jay Reatard) was found dead in his Memphis home at the young age of 29. Police are looking into his death as a homicide, though the exact reason for death hasn’t yet been determined. He’s been making music since ’98 but hadn’t really been noticed until his 2006 album release Blood Visions.
All of last year, I was always seeing his name in all the music blogs. He just played a show here in Pittsburgh in November at Brillobox. His 2009 release, Watch Me Fall, is a great album. It always sucks when someone is taken away before really being able to enjoy what their talents have made for themselves.
The video above is just from last month (December 3, 2009).
On the Lookout: Cold Cave
Cold Cave – Life Magazine
UK magazine Clash, is probably my #1 favorite music magazine. So, naturally I was excited to see Cold Cave on their list of “2010 One’s to Watch”. Here’s Cold Caves’ track “Life Magazine”.
Filed under Check 'em Out!, video
“I’m Not Alone” Remix
Calvin Harris – I’m Not Alone DEADMAU5 REMIX
Awhile ago, I posted the original “I’m Not Alone” video. This one is the Deadmau5 remix. I LOVE Calvin Harris AND Deadmau5!!!
Filed under video
Hooray For Earth
HOORAY FOR EARTH – Surrounded By Your Friends
I’m loving this song…but watch out, this video is for sure to bring some nightmares.
Filed under Check 'em Out!, video
Artists on the Verge
From the New Music Seminar and OurStage.com, comes a new, exciting contest!
Enter to win this once in a lifetime opportunity aimed to help break aspiring artists’ careers in the music industry though direct exposure and personal mentoring from some of the most influential and connected industry leaders of the new music business. The winner will also receive a special prize musical package including free musical equipment, video promotion, publicity services, legal work, CD pressing and much more.
Entries are open to all unsigned artists in the Urban, Rock or Pop genres, and will be accepted until December 22nd, 2009 at http://bit.ly/TheVerge
Ten Finalists – A Judge Panel consisting of music industry leaders will select ten finalists from the top 20 ranked artists from each of the “Artists on the Verge” OurStage Channels. These ten finalists will have their A&R promotional packages and EPKs delivered to 20 top record labels in North America for consideration.
Top Three Finalists – The top three finalists will be awarded travel funds and passes to Los Angeles to attend the New Music Seminar on February 2nd, 2010 following the Grammy Awards. The three finalists will each receive a live mentoring and critique session by industry experts (led by superstar artists, producers, radio programmers, and bloggers) in front of the NMS audience.
Grand Prize Winner -The One Grand Prize Winner will be chosen at NMS to perform at the NMS After Party and will receive a comprehensive music consultation package that will include special music prizes, services and offerings from some of the smartest and most connected leaders of the new music business.
For more details on the entry rules and contest please go to: http://www.ourstage.com/go/artistsontheverge
Upcoming: US Album Debut
The Uncomfortable Truth
With two albums out since 2007, Nneka is already an established singer, songwriter and rapper…in the UK. But, this powerful woman with roots in Nigeria and Germany is ready for the States to hear her roar.
Nneka has been compared to Erykah Badu, Mos Def, and Lauryn Hill. She’s played with The Roots, and toured with Lenny Kravitz. Her US album debut, Concrete Jungle, is set for release February 2, 2010. The album is full of soulful, meaningful and catchy songs that can’t be ignored. Her voice is “located between a place of yearning and rage.” Nneka addresses important issues through her music, and still manages to keep her audience entertained. To me, she’s the breakthrough voice we need for the new generation.
Her first released single from Concrete Jungle is “The Uncomfortable Truth.” Have a listen, you might hear something you didn’t expect and have a new favorite female vocalist.
Filed under Check 'em Out!, new albums, video
Pittsburgh Upcoming Concerts: February & March
February 25, 2010: Eric Clapton and Roger Daltrey (of The Who) at Mellon Arena. You can buy tickets starting Saturday through Ticketmaster.
Clapton hasn’t been here since 1998!!!
March 4, 2010: Black Eyed Peas with LMFAO at Mellon Arena.
So Many Dynamos
So Many Dynamos latest album, The Loud Wars, was released in June through Vagrant Records. This indie rock palindrome band has been around for awhile, though. One of their tours back in 2006 included a couple of shows with John Vanderslice. They’ve also shared the stage with many others worth mentioning, including Ra Ra Riot and Harvey Danger.
The first song, “Artifacts of Sound” was originally named “Out of this Party” but was changed after realizing that would be their third song with “party” in its title. There are a few parts of the song, as well as the album, where their sound brought the Lost Prophets to mind, particularly their song “Rooftops”. But, what I immediately found interesting on my first listen of the album is that all of the songs seem to have two parts to them. There were a few occasions where the sound changed so drastically that I had to look and see if I was still listening to the same track.
The next three tracks, “Glaciers”, “The Novelty of Haunting”, and “New Bones” have an unusual twist to their melodies. All three of these songs contain melodies from past So Many Dynamos songs performed backwards! What a creative dynamic, Dynamos! Not to mention, the songs are like stories, where the listener is able to pinpoint their climaxes and resolutions. “Oh, the Devastation!” and “The Formula” use group vocals to thankfully break up the monotony a little bit.
“Friendarmy” is a little bit calmer and quieter of a song, but not the lyrics. “You think we’re kidding, we’re not. We’re only playing but we’re playing God.” “It’s Gonna Rain” brings back the loudness but in the middle of the song they throw in some small video game sounding bits. Listen to the song in its entirety, and you’ll especially see here what I mean about the two songs in one. All of a sudden towards the end, the song sounds much happier, even though the band is yelling “I don’t want to make amends; I want to make a mess.”
Though I admit I have a tough time picking them out, the album does have some similarities to other bands. But, they definitely have their own spin to their music. Sometimes the confusion of not knowing where the song is going, makes the song excitedly better. With that said, I have been enjoying The Loud Wars all week, which is more than I thought I would.
Filed under Reviews
Mad Caddies Show
I'm no photographer, but I tried!
As soon as I found out punk-ska group Mad Caddies were coming to town, I was pulling out the datebook and marking it down. I’ve been a fan for years, and had no idea that they were even touring.
The band formed in 1995 in California, and they’ve got 6 albums to date. (They’ve also got 6 band members…what if they added on a bandmate for every new album? Hmmm…)
Anyways, I told some friends about the show and convinced them to come. A couple of them didn’t know their music, and asked what kind they play. That’s actually a tougher question that you’d originally think. I mean, they are ska. They are punk. But, they’re also many others in between such as swing, reggae, and jazz. Put it all together in a blender and you’ve got a MAD freakin’ time!
I prepared for the show for about a week by digging out my old Caddies albums and dancing around my apartment. I was really pumped. The night of the show I had sushi and cocktails beforehand and got to the venue right in time. The band had just started their first song of the set.
The crowd was perfect. What made it even more awesome was that a lot of them knew the words to the songs! Hooray! The band did a great job of being lively on stage, especially Ed Hernandez on his trombone. He stood out on the edge poking that thing out into the crowd, lovingly. There were at total of 3 songs that I was praying to hear: “Wet Dog”, “Backyard”, and “Drinking for 11”. They DID play the latter (which I figured there was a good chance of hearing that one because it may very well be their most popular song), and I DID love dancing and singing the words. I tried to yell out to them “WET DOG! WET DOG!” but they couldn’t hear me.
Regardless of not hearing the other 2 songs, they did play a brand new song and they still put on a great show. They made a couple new fans in my friends out of it, too. AND if I heard correctly, they’re planning to come out with a new album next year!
Filed under Shows
Musically Amusing 