http://blip.fm/KSpot84
I started a Blip today... Thanks Erin MIK!
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Bradford... my love
"I understand the pain your in"... hearing that lyric makes me daydream of seeing him singing in front of me, serenading me. Lately I've been thinking about musicians I'd really want to meet, and on the top of my list is Bradford Cox. I just want to sit down with him, drink some coffee, and talk about life. He's had a pretty crazy one, that's for sure. I'm really in love with his voice and want to know everything about the musical genius that is living inside of him. How in the world does Deerhunter do it... not only write great lyrics, but create beautiful melodies. All of my favorite songs conclude in a minute long instrumental part that completely transitions the song at the exact perfect moment... just the guitars and drums making magical sounds.
Gezz
Gezz
Deerhunter - Desire Lines / Hazel Street / Never Stop from Big Ass Lens on Vimeo.
Monday, October 25, 2010
New Music Genre, created by yours truly
Low-wave.... just made that up last week and I think it sums up the sound that a lot of great bands have. Snare drums, lo-fi bass, and 2 guitars that create a beautiful melody so fluid like that intertwines with one another. I'll expand on this later... just needed to get this word down before I forget.
Friday, October 22, 2010
CMJ Music Marathon... whatevs
Everyone who lives in NY/Brooklyn, do you even know how lucky you are to have access to way more great live music than any other city in the US? Srsly, wish I could live there just for a few days so I could see all my fav bands. I know if I really DID live there, I'd totally be broke and not appreciate it as much.
In any case, CMJ Music Festival is going on right now in New York. It's pretty much like SXSW, except for the fact that I'm not actually there. I listen to satelite radio all day and each DJ can't stop talking about all the great shows going on right now in NYC... it's really pissing me off, because I'm jelly (jealous). Whatevs stupid New York...
One buzz band for CMJ is Cloud Nothings. Cloud Nothings have been on my mind for weeks. A few things I really like about them is the lead singers muffled voice and the peppy/up-beat guitar... I especially appreciate the fact the that they're not from LA or Brooklyn. FINALLY. Most of the new-indie bands are from either of those places, so I get excited every time I find out a band isn't from there. Anyways, CN came out with their first full length ablum last Tuesday (October 12th... I even marked it on my calendar weeks before the date because I was anxious to hear it) and it's realllllly good. "Strumming" and "Turning On" are by far my favorite songs. "Turning On" starts off with a heavy bass then comes in the peppy/friendly guitar with their singers fuzzy voice. Their sound is true garage rock... more so than other garage-y/lo-fi bands that I've been into lately, I think at least. It's a pretty raw album yet an incredibly clever way to record, and it puts a smile on my face every time I listen to it.
Anyways, it's been a hard week and I've been in desperate need of some inspiration. Music always seems to be the cure, even if I'm just listening to the melody or rythm rather than the actual words, it helps. Sometimes I'd rather zone out to the beat, and completely ignore the words... words can be overrated. Lately, I just want to get lost in the guitar or drum part of a song, rather than sing the words.
Well, that's all I really can say. Here's my play list for the week:
-Cloud Nothings "Turning On"
-Cloud Nothings "Hey Cool Kid"
-Cloud Nothings "Strummin"
-Deerhunter "Rainwater Cassette Exchange" (THIS is a great song. Get on it)
-The Fresh & Onlys "Waterfall (I downloaded their full album, and I'm pretty disappointed, but I still like this song)
-The Modern Lovers "Roadrunner (an oldie, but a goodie)
-The Modern Lovers "Someone I care About" (Lou Reed, for sure)
In any case, CMJ Music Festival is going on right now in New York. It's pretty much like SXSW, except for the fact that I'm not actually there. I listen to satelite radio all day and each DJ can't stop talking about all the great shows going on right now in NYC... it's really pissing me off, because I'm jelly (jealous). Whatevs stupid New York...
One buzz band for CMJ is Cloud Nothings. Cloud Nothings have been on my mind for weeks. A few things I really like about them is the lead singers muffled voice and the peppy/up-beat guitar... I especially appreciate the fact the that they're not from LA or Brooklyn. FINALLY. Most of the new-indie bands are from either of those places, so I get excited every time I find out a band isn't from there. Anyways, CN came out with their first full length ablum last Tuesday (October 12th... I even marked it on my calendar weeks before the date because I was anxious to hear it) and it's realllllly good. "Strumming" and "Turning On" are by far my favorite songs. "Turning On" starts off with a heavy bass then comes in the peppy/friendly guitar with their singers fuzzy voice. Their sound is true garage rock... more so than other garage-y/lo-fi bands that I've been into lately, I think at least. It's a pretty raw album yet an incredibly clever way to record, and it puts a smile on my face every time I listen to it.
Cloud Nothings- "Turning On" from the great pumpkin on Vimeo.
Anyways, it's been a hard week and I've been in desperate need of some inspiration. Music always seems to be the cure, even if I'm just listening to the melody or rythm rather than the actual words, it helps. Sometimes I'd rather zone out to the beat, and completely ignore the words... words can be overrated. Lately, I just want to get lost in the guitar or drum part of a song, rather than sing the words.
Well, that's all I really can say. Here's my play list for the week:
-Cloud Nothings "Turning On"
-Cloud Nothings "Hey Cool Kid"
-Cloud Nothings "Strummin"
-Deerhunter "Rainwater Cassette Exchange" (THIS is a great song. Get on it)
-The Fresh & Onlys "Waterfall (I downloaded their full album, and I'm pretty disappointed, but I still like this song)
-The Modern Lovers "Roadrunner (an oldie, but a goodie)
-The Modern Lovers "Someone I care About" (Lou Reed, for sure)
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
ACL... what a surprise!
Austin City Limits... I have to say, after my 4 year ban on the festival, I'm glad I decided to go. This years line up was FINALLY worth a ticket. So after the daily schedule was released months ago, I knew I'd be dumb not to go on Friday. Friday's line up was definitely worth the money AND wait.
I guess I should start my ACL weekend by telling you what I did Thursday night (pre-ACL)... Spoon at The Mohawk. I knew the moment I saw them listed on the bill at the Hawk that it would be a show not to be forgotten... and it was THE best show I've ever seen Spoon put on. Probably because they never play at a "smaller" venue in Austin these days. I think there are several elements that make a great show; obvisiously sound, connection with the crowd and what not. But what REALLY tops of a great show is seeing the band really happy and gracious to be playing in front of people who love their music. And this is what Spoon did. You'd be blind not to notice how happy they were to be back in Austin, playing in front of the people that bought these tickets within hours after they went on sale. Truly an experience. They played a lot of older songs, which I totally dug. I'm probably a little bias about Spoon because they are one of my favorite bands, but if you were at the show, you were lucky... that was the perfect starter to a great ACL weekend.
After having wonderful dreams of Spoon all night, Friday morning came and I was back into "festival mode" (haven't been to a festival in years... SXSW doesn't count!). Lots of walking and anticipation for the amazing full day of music ahead. Unfortunately, I got there a little too late to catch the full set of The Soft Pack. I was really hoping to check these guys out, but that's ok... The beauty of the festival is, most buzz bands you want to see WILL be back to Austin. After a while of planning out my day, next on the list was Girls, which I posted up for about a hour to try and be as close to the stage as possible. I'm a little luke warm about this set... probably because the sound was terrible, I mean terrible. Finally after 30 minutes of straining to hear his voice and complains from the crowd, the mic turned up a bit. I knew I'd still like their music regardless of this experience, but I'm glad I got to see them. The lead singer was incredibly charming and cute... He barely spoke to the crowd, but when there was a break in between songs he'd just do a cute little smile and mouth some words that you couldn't hear, probably on purpose. Either way, I kinda feel in love with him. Surprise!
Next up, Beach House. After a walk across Zilker, I made it to the stage and decided to wait it out until their performance. I saw BH months ago at Emo's and like most shows I see at that venue, I can barely actually "see the band", so I was glad to get a second chance at them. Recently, they added 2 additional band members, a drummer and keyboardist/guitarist. Beach House was already amazing before this addition, but wow... the sound the 2 new members added really made a difference, in a good way. By far, the BEST performance of the day. Beach House was just like Spoon on Thursday night, incredible performance but completely gracious and estatic to be performing in front of fans. I think all true BH fans could feel the energy and vibes they were emitting from the stage. Such a great performance and experience.
So after a day of recovering from ACL (aka, sleeping and resting my footsies)... something incredible happened.
Somehow I scored free VIP passes to ACL on Sunday from some wonderful people I met that were unable to go. So unexpected, but completely amazing. I had finally dealt with the fact that purchasing a ticket for just Friday meant that I'd miss Edward Sharpe AND the Eagles on Sunday. But now this.... what is a girl to do!
So Sunday arrives, and I'm completely stoked... not only for a free ticket, but for free food and drinks AND access to a shaded area with clean bathrooms. VIP is the way to go! I probably should have caught more shows than I did (totally took advantage of the shaded VIP area with free stuff), but the 3 best shows were Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, The National, and The Eagles. Ed Sharpe... absolutely incredible. I saw these guys a year ago and still to this day, think it's the best show I saw in 2009. Alexander (lead singer) was walking on top of the crowd half the time... soooo good and magical. The National was great as well. They are professional musicians... so consistent, clean, and perfect. The Eagles... well, living legends. My friends and I were surrounded by true Eagles fans, jamming out and singing at the TOP of our lungs to every song. After so many years of performing, how do they manage to do it? I know I yelled "STILL HOTT" a million times (sorry to anyone around me that is embarrassed). But they were... still hot and incredible. I cried during "Lying Eyes", I was just so happy and thankful to have been given the opportunity to see them live. Listening to the Eagles gives me a warm, fuzzy feeling of being a kid. Driving around with my dad, listening to 70s rock and totally unaware of the world around us.
Even though ACL was better than I expected, I can't help but be super anxious/excited for all of the amazing shows coming up in the Fall. After experiencing a weekend full of great music makes me realize how lucky I am to be in Austin. There is live music is everywhere I turn, every night of the week it's there, calling for me... Lots of great shows coming in the next few weeks, especially Fun Fun Fun Fest.
And with that said, here's my play list for the week (ACL & FFF Fest inspired):
Edward Sharpe "Om Nashi Me"
Ed Sharpe "Carries On"
Beach House "Better Times"
Beach House "Silver Soul"
Deerhunter "Nothing Ever Happened"
Deerhunter "Rainwater Cassette Exchange"
Softpack "Gagdad"
Softpack "Parasites"
Ariel Pink "Revolutions a Lie"
Best Coast "The End"
That's all... until next time,
K is out!
I guess I should start my ACL weekend by telling you what I did Thursday night (pre-ACL)... Spoon at The Mohawk. I knew the moment I saw them listed on the bill at the Hawk that it would be a show not to be forgotten... and it was THE best show I've ever seen Spoon put on. Probably because they never play at a "smaller" venue in Austin these days. I think there are several elements that make a great show; obvisiously sound, connection with the crowd and what not. But what REALLY tops of a great show is seeing the band really happy and gracious to be playing in front of people who love their music. And this is what Spoon did. You'd be blind not to notice how happy they were to be back in Austin, playing in front of the people that bought these tickets within hours after they went on sale. Truly an experience. They played a lot of older songs, which I totally dug. I'm probably a little bias about Spoon because they are one of my favorite bands, but if you were at the show, you were lucky... that was the perfect starter to a great ACL weekend.
After having wonderful dreams of Spoon all night, Friday morning came and I was back into "festival mode" (haven't been to a festival in years... SXSW doesn't count!). Lots of walking and anticipation for the amazing full day of music ahead. Unfortunately, I got there a little too late to catch the full set of The Soft Pack. I was really hoping to check these guys out, but that's ok... The beauty of the festival is, most buzz bands you want to see WILL be back to Austin. After a while of planning out my day, next on the list was Girls, which I posted up for about a hour to try and be as close to the stage as possible. I'm a little luke warm about this set... probably because the sound was terrible, I mean terrible. Finally after 30 minutes of straining to hear his voice and complains from the crowd, the mic turned up a bit. I knew I'd still like their music regardless of this experience, but I'm glad I got to see them. The lead singer was incredibly charming and cute... He barely spoke to the crowd, but when there was a break in between songs he'd just do a cute little smile and mouth some words that you couldn't hear, probably on purpose. Either way, I kinda feel in love with him. Surprise!
Next up, Beach House. After a walk across Zilker, I made it to the stage and decided to wait it out until their performance. I saw BH months ago at Emo's and like most shows I see at that venue, I can barely actually "see the band", so I was glad to get a second chance at them. Recently, they added 2 additional band members, a drummer and keyboardist/guitarist. Beach House was already amazing before this addition, but wow... the sound the 2 new members added really made a difference, in a good way. By far, the BEST performance of the day. Beach House was just like Spoon on Thursday night, incredible performance but completely gracious and estatic to be performing in front of fans. I think all true BH fans could feel the energy and vibes they were emitting from the stage. Such a great performance and experience.
So after a day of recovering from ACL (aka, sleeping and resting my footsies)... something incredible happened.
Somehow I scored free VIP passes to ACL on Sunday from some wonderful people I met that were unable to go. So unexpected, but completely amazing. I had finally dealt with the fact that purchasing a ticket for just Friday meant that I'd miss Edward Sharpe AND the Eagles on Sunday. But now this.... what is a girl to do!
So Sunday arrives, and I'm completely stoked... not only for a free ticket, but for free food and drinks AND access to a shaded area with clean bathrooms. VIP is the way to go! I probably should have caught more shows than I did (totally took advantage of the shaded VIP area with free stuff), but the 3 best shows were Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, The National, and The Eagles. Ed Sharpe... absolutely incredible. I saw these guys a year ago and still to this day, think it's the best show I saw in 2009. Alexander (lead singer) was walking on top of the crowd half the time... soooo good and magical. The National was great as well. They are professional musicians... so consistent, clean, and perfect. The Eagles... well, living legends. My friends and I were surrounded by true Eagles fans, jamming out and singing at the TOP of our lungs to every song. After so many years of performing, how do they manage to do it? I know I yelled "STILL HOTT" a million times (sorry to anyone around me that is embarrassed). But they were... still hot and incredible. I cried during "Lying Eyes", I was just so happy and thankful to have been given the opportunity to see them live. Listening to the Eagles gives me a warm, fuzzy feeling of being a kid. Driving around with my dad, listening to 70s rock and totally unaware of the world around us.
Even though ACL was better than I expected, I can't help but be super anxious/excited for all of the amazing shows coming up in the Fall. After experiencing a weekend full of great music makes me realize how lucky I am to be in Austin. There is live music is everywhere I turn, every night of the week it's there, calling for me... Lots of great shows coming in the next few weeks, especially Fun Fun Fun Fest.
And with that said, here's my play list for the week (ACL & FFF Fest inspired):
Edward Sharpe "Om Nashi Me"
Ed Sharpe "Carries On"
Beach House "Better Times"
Beach House "Silver Soul"
Deerhunter "Nothing Ever Happened"
Deerhunter "Rainwater Cassette Exchange"
Softpack "Gagdad"
Softpack "Parasites"
Ariel Pink "Revolutions a Lie"
Best Coast "The End"
That's all... until next time,
K is out!
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Dance party in my head
Dance is therapy for me... so instead of paying to go see a therapist, I'm just gunna dance around and get all the bad/unchill vibes outta me... like an exorcism of sorts. When I can't "physically dance", I'm gunna throw a dance party in my head. This is especially effective at work, or on a plane.
For the past few weeks I've been listening to my latest and greatest mix tape of chillwave. This is what keeps me happy... My current dance party, playlist obsession is with this new artist, Twin Shadow. Click play on the video, listen, and read.
Straight out of the '80's... where did this guy come from? I swear, he must have a time machine because he looks and sounds like he is from 1984. How did he learn to play this kind of music? Did he watch music video's from the '80's and train himself to play the synths and drum machine just like new wavers back then? Whatever his story is, I love him. He's beautiful and his voice makes my knees go weak. The first time I heard "Slow" I remember saying out loud, while driving, "where did this come from? who is it? I gotta have more!" "I don't wanna believe, or be in love"... what a great line.
I listened to the album about 5 times and fell in love (i fall in love easily with music, especially chillwave). I think after the 15th listen, I REALLY got it. Every song evolves into the next, like a story about love and love gone wrong. One element that sets Twin Shadow apart from the other chillwave artists I like is how clean and clear his voice is. He's such a great song writer and even though it's dance beats, the songs are deep and relatable. My favorite track is the last one on the album "Forget". It starts off slow with a little synth, then moves into some drum machine beats... then his beautiful man voice emerges. "When winter sets in, it has a way of crystalizing all the bad times, the fevers and heartaches... This is all of it, this is everyone I'm wanting to forget." The exact thing you would say after you've just had a shitty relationship. Wow.
Another dance obsession I have is with this group called Palmbomen... ETTM (extreme to the max... thanks Erin) dancy. The voices are a bit fuzzy, but it's all about the beats. Makes me wanna do a weird, shitty version of the robot and wear bright blue tights with lighting bolts on them. Such good beats, man. AND they are from the Netherlands.
On an ending note, I'm diggin the new Crystal Stilts song "Shake the Shackels"(dancy new wave, yet a little bit rock)... here it is:
Shake the Shackles by Crystal Stilts
I really like this guys voice, sounds like a fusion of Ian from Joy Division and Paul Banks from Interpol. It's out October 26th yo!
For the past few weeks I've been listening to my latest and greatest mix tape of chillwave. This is what keeps me happy... My current dance party, playlist obsession is with this new artist, Twin Shadow. Click play on the video, listen, and read.
Straight out of the '80's... where did this guy come from? I swear, he must have a time machine because he looks and sounds like he is from 1984. How did he learn to play this kind of music? Did he watch music video's from the '80's and train himself to play the synths and drum machine just like new wavers back then? Whatever his story is, I love him. He's beautiful and his voice makes my knees go weak. The first time I heard "Slow" I remember saying out loud, while driving, "where did this come from? who is it? I gotta have more!" "I don't wanna believe, or be in love"... what a great line.
I listened to the album about 5 times and fell in love (i fall in love easily with music, especially chillwave). I think after the 15th listen, I REALLY got it. Every song evolves into the next, like a story about love and love gone wrong. One element that sets Twin Shadow apart from the other chillwave artists I like is how clean and clear his voice is. He's such a great song writer and even though it's dance beats, the songs are deep and relatable. My favorite track is the last one on the album "Forget". It starts off slow with a little synth, then moves into some drum machine beats... then his beautiful man voice emerges. "When winter sets in, it has a way of crystalizing all the bad times, the fevers and heartaches... This is all of it, this is everyone I'm wanting to forget." The exact thing you would say after you've just had a shitty relationship. Wow.
Another dance obsession I have is with this group called Palmbomen... ETTM (extreme to the max... thanks Erin) dancy. The voices are a bit fuzzy, but it's all about the beats. Makes me wanna do a weird, shitty version of the robot and wear bright blue tights with lighting bolts on them. Such good beats, man. AND they are from the Netherlands.
On an ending note, I'm diggin the new Crystal Stilts song "Shake the Shackels"(dancy new wave, yet a little bit rock)... here it is:
Shake the Shackles by Crystal Stilts
I really like this guys voice, sounds like a fusion of Ian from Joy Division and Paul Banks from Interpol. It's out October 26th yo!
Friday, October 1, 2010
October 12th.... can't wait!!
So I checked the Pitchfork website today and they have an incredibly long list of all the Fall album releases. While browsing (and making notes), I happen to notice that 3 albums I've been WAITING for are finally coming out...
Beach Fossils- HEAD OVER HEELS in love with them. Their sounds is so simple to follow and easy on the ears. Bassists John, your style sounds just like Joy Division. Skinny ass boys that can play instruments well... who wouldn't love 'em.
Cloud Nothings- itunes only have like 3 songs you can download. I heard these guys a few months ago and can't wait to hear more of them. They are coming to Austin for a few shows late October and I will be front row
Real Estate- "Out of Tune" has been all over xmu and I can't get it "out of my head"... AHHHH. so excited!
If I could sum up the sound of these three bands it would be "east coast, beach lo-fi rock"?
Some other cool news... Bradford Cox will be co-hosting at xmu all next week. SOOO glad I can listen to it during the day. I have a feeling his personality will swoop me off my feet.
Anyways, that's all....
Beach Fossils- HEAD OVER HEELS in love with them. Their sounds is so simple to follow and easy on the ears. Bassists John, your style sounds just like Joy Division. Skinny ass boys that can play instruments well... who wouldn't love 'em.
Cloud Nothings- itunes only have like 3 songs you can download. I heard these guys a few months ago and can't wait to hear more of them. They are coming to Austin for a few shows late October and I will be front row
Real Estate- "Out of Tune" has been all over xmu and I can't get it "out of my head"... AHHHH. so excited!
If I could sum up the sound of these three bands it would be "east coast, beach lo-fi rock"?
Some other cool news... Bradford Cox will be co-hosting at xmu all next week. SOOO glad I can listen to it during the day. I have a feeling his personality will swoop me off my feet.
Anyways, that's all....
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