Kanye West Delivers a Classic

I’ve never really been a big Kanye West fan. I liked College Dropout well enough and thought roughly half of Late Registration was fantastic. But neither ever seemed to me like the sort of world-breaking achievements that warranted Ye’s massive ego. But with Graduation, West has actually backed up his insane braggadocio, delivering the rare hip-hop album that not only manages to fulfill expectations but exceed them.

Whereas Late Registration in its saccharine swooning strings and superfluous instrumentation felt all too much like the work of a slightly insecure guy trying to make the most “important” sounding album possible, Graduation is the work of a confident and assured artist in his prime. It marks the first time in his career where his rapping ability has caught up to his production skills, the moment when Kanye finally became comfortable and consistent in his own persona, or as he puts it on “Good Morning”: the fly Malcolm X, buy any jeans necessary.”

It’s the album that you hoped that the guy from College Dropout would grow up to make. Dallas Penn thinks the album is the sound of the future, and he’s not all that far off. It’s a mess of techno synths, haunting organs and familiar sounds re-purposed ingeniously, an avatar of the weird post-Internet world where the jump between Daft Punk and mainstream hip-hop doesn’t seem all that far. And no one understands this new world better than Kanye, as he samples Steely Dan, Daft Punk, Can, Michael Jackson, to create one of the the most creatively produced hip-hop records since De La Soul. More importantly, he chops the samples well, manipulating the vocals effortlessly and precisely to create a seamlessness that his music had often lacked.

Pink: Still Not a Good Look

I realize this sort of comes off like some of fanboy declaration of how good this record is, but in all honesty, I was relatively apathetic to West until the album leaked yesterday. But on Graduation, he’s captured something special, the sort of instant classic that feels impossible to hate on. You kind of have to root for the guy. It’s sort of like the ultimate vindication for rap nerds everywhere, that a dorky guy who could barely get a record deal actually turned into the most acclaimed rapper in the world and instead of squandering his talent, he dug deeper and worked harder to secure his legacy.

I’m not sure how this album will hold up over time, as I’ve only heard it a half dozen times so far, but my gut instincts tell me that it will go down as one of the great rap records of the decade. I realize this is a bold statement to make but let’s be real, anybody that manages to coax great performances out of Chris Martin and T-Pain deserves a Nobel fucking Prize. So, count me in with the pack. This is worthy of the hype that will doubtlessly be thrown its way. I guess Kanye West really has graduated to become the artist he always wanted to be, finally earning the right to not have to be told anything. Though, maybe he should listen every once and a while. After all, somebody needs to tell him that those pink outfits make him look like a gay salmon.

Download:
MP3: Kanye West-”Everything I Am ft. DJ Premier)” (left-click)
MP3: Kanye West-”Stronger” (left-click)

Posted in Album Reviews | 7 Comments »

Great Scott! 5 of the Worst Movies Involving Rappers

Scott Towler has returned from licking his wounds over ABC’s refusal to grant him an interview regarding their “Go Green” campaign. He is now reasonably convinced that licking one’s own wounds is rather pointless and slightly weird.

America loves rappers turned actors. It makes sense in theory. Good rappers are usually born performers and by nature exude a confidence and swagger that would translate well to the screen. Besides, most rappers are liars anyhow (or did you think that every one really has a crime record longer than Manute Bol?), so one would think acting shouldn’t be a stretch. Or maybe they just walked into their agent’s office one day, pointed a gun at him or he and said: “Give me a movie or I’ll motherfucking kill you.” It worked for Suge Knight.

Sadly, the rise of the rapper/actor/model (and not the other way around), has not made for great cinema. See these five examples.

DMX is not an actor. Fine, technically he is. He did Belly and that was cool. But a fucking Seagal movie? That’s like a legit actor taking a role on a soap opera and playing the “hunky doctor from out of town” (to quote Soap Opera Digest) The only reason I watch this thing was to see just how fast DMX could load a gun on screen. The answer: swiftly, with a touch of thug. What more can you ask for?

Though Ice Cube still continues to believe he is a thug icon, he’s about as tame as a Bengal Tiger in Las Vegas: you know the thug is still there, but has long left the wild (see Siegfried). Though I gotta give Cube some credit. Out of all the actor/rappers out there, he’s the most legit. Between Are We There Yet, Are We Done Yet, and Friday, he has tremendous commercial appeal. The only problem came early on in his acting career when he finished out the tail end of his contractual obligation making Next Friday and then Friday After Next…Friday (the first one, not next Friday, homes) or whatever that abortion of a movie was called.

I’ll confess, I paid to see Next Friday in theaters. And it wasn’t half bad. It wasn’t half good either. So to take a concept (the first movie), make that concept worse (the second movie), and then go and make that concept even worse (see above movie poster)…well…I’m baffled. The only saving grace is that Cube has enough staying power to not let that kill his career. After all, Cube ain’t a killer, he’s a lover. Or did you not hear “Today was a Good Day?”

It’s not just male raptors that make this mistake (ooh, there’s the word! raptor!) Anyway, just like the male raptors that have made movies, the female dilophosaurs are just as guilty. Exhibit A: Queen “UNITY” and the abomination that was Taxi. Call me crazy, but I think Jill Scott could’ve played this role better, plus I would have enjoyed her voice more. Instead, Jill Scott keeps making fantastic R&B records, and Queen Latifah has all but given up on music. I think her last venture was a lounge CD. And not even the good kind of lounge (think Guidance Records in Chicago or OM in San Fran), but the cheesy Benny Goodman “In the Mood” lounge of the 30s and 40s. Good for you lady! You managed to make yourself even less appealing! Yippee! Maybe next you can paint a face on your stomach and wear one of those hats that goes down to your boobs. I’ll sign you up for a Shriner parade, and we’ll pay you in circus peanuts.

The studio exec that made this probably believes that blaxsploitation probably died with I’m Gonna Git You Sucka. Truth be told, blaxsploitation is still alive and kicking today. It’s most recent incarnation, Mo’nique’s Phat Girlz, is a film about a hunky man falling for Mo’Nique’s hideous self. Then, at the end of the movie, he tells her that the real beauty is in a big woman. Yeah fucking right. Hey Mo Mo- wake up. You suck, you’re not funny, and please stop making me switch to letter box just so I can fit the other actor in the scene.

A more classic look at blaxsploitation comes from Soul Plane, a movie in which nothing happens but the obvious. It’s like it was written by K-fed and Jamie Kennedy collaborating around the theme that if they can put hydraulics on the plane, people will think it was both “dope” and “ill” and maybe even Snoop could come in and say ‘fizzle’ for the white people to luagh. Soul Plane was just a string of tired stereotypes trying to re-make Barber Shop, ran out of locations, and put it on a plane. Newsflash crackers: there are no purple airplanes. And the day that ‘the world’s most ghetto airline’ has a hub in LA (aside from United Airlines) let me know. I’ll sip on sizzurp and get blunted at 30,000 feet.

Idlewild actually had good intentions: setting the modern movie-musical and setting it in a different place and time than anyone had seen done before. Except Idlewild felt like a string of music videos pieced together to make a mediocre movie. Even if they were made the music first and wrote the script around it, theme albums are just hard to do. They knew this much-delayed movie was gonna’ be a failure welll before it was released. Not to mention the film premiered around the same time as ATL and Get Rich or Die Trying. Poor timing, poor script, and shitty acting don’t make a movie. Unless we’re talking Teen Wolf.

Download:
MP3: Outkast-”Hollywood Divorce”

Posted in Great Scott | 7 Comments »

Fuck That Beef Shit, That Shit is Played Out

If these two could reconcile after Jay-Z fucked Nas’ baby mama and then told the world about it, how difficult could it be for me and Bradford of Deerhunter to squash our short-lived and obviously absurd beef, one most aptly summarized by Maura of Idolator as making you regret the invention of the Internet? The answer: not hard at all. Bradford sent me a very kind and apologetic e-mail yesterday and in return I did the same. In short, shit is all good. I’d explain more, but Bradford’s already done so on his own blog, so go there and while you’re at it, you ought to download some of the mixes he’s posted. They’re good. I’ll be posting a mix on their blog sometime in the next week and hopefully, he’ll do the same on the Passion. Thanks for the kind e-mails of support and for all the hateful comments that called for my head on a platter. Both were equally entertaining.

MP3: Deerhunter-”Wash Off”

Posted in Miscellany | 9 Comments »

Tunng-Good Arrows

While the blogosphere hyperventilates about the leak of the new Devendra Banhart album, Smokey Goes to Bear Mountain, Grows a Beard and Has an Orgy with 14 Girls Named Rain Who Have Hairy Arm Pits and Went to Vassar, another, far better folk album has gone practically unnoticed: Tung’s Good Arrows.

I attribute the lack of attention alloted to the London-based sextet, to the fact that the name Tunng inevitably conjures up nightmarish images of unappetizing sandwiches that you may or may not find at your local overpriced delicatessen. But rest assured that along with Monkey Swallows the Universe’s similarly excellent, The Casket Letters (see Ian Mathers’ outstanding Stylus review), the Tunng album is one of the best folk records made this year, one that proves that in the year 2007 the Brits apparently have a monopoly on good but melancholy folk bands with really stupid names.

Just 42 minutes, Good Arrows is a collection of 11 beautiful wistful meditations; acoustic guitars fleshed out by patches of electronic tinkering that beef up the record’s frail sound and help brighten its down-tempo mood. The band has been compared to the Beta Band and Four Tet and I’d say those comparisons are apt. Though unlike those two bands, Tunng don’t really make stoner headphone trips, but instead craft soothing music for the come-down, when the high has worn off and you need a record to stop your thoughts from careening like pinballs. Plus, if you cop it, you’ll get the chance to approach a record store clerk and ask him or her for some Tunng. And really, how many times are you gonna’ get to do that in your life without getting arrested?

Buy Good Arrows

Download:
MP3: Tunng-”Bricks”

From 2006’s Comments of the Inner Chorus
MP3: Tunng-”Woodcat”

From 2005’s Mothers Daughters and Other Songs
MP3: Tunng-”Tale from Black”

B-Side from “The Pioneer” Single
MP3: Tunng-”Pool Beneath the Pond”

Posted in Album Reviews | 4 Comments »

The Beat Generation: Will I Ain’t

Zilla Rocca, the mastermind behind Beat Garden Entertainment and 1/2 of Clean Guns, (the most OCD fire-arms in the history of automatic weaponry) has returned to once again grace us with his presence. He dedicates this rant to David Banner and Peedi Crakk for respectively melting Al Sharpton’s crusade to censor lyrics and for calling Papoose out for flat-out sucking.

I first came across Will I Am (aka Wyclef on a budget) back in the late 90s when Black Eyed Peas’ “Joints and Jams” appeared on the Bullworth soundtrack. Like any hip hop head, the song and video was a breath of fresh air during a time dominated by Ruff Ryders and No Limit Soldiers. The Peas were actual b-boys doing actual b-boy shit in their videos—paying homage to hip hop’s past while breaking and spitting the most basic, kindergarten rhymes I’ve ever heard.

But who cared at that point? Hell, The Peas even managed to get a joint from Premier for their second album. And they certainly weren’t as pompous as The Roots, so they had no reason to generate any type of feelings from me. Hell, I didn’t even bat an eye when will.i.am put out an instrumental CD on BBE alongside Pete Rock and J Dilla (yes, this actually happened).

Of course that all changed with “Where is The Love?” And then “Let’s Get Retarded”—oops, I mean “Let’s Get it Started” (can’t piss off the NBA). And then “Shut Up.” And then “My Humps.” And that song no one liked but was on those damn Best Buy commercials where they jacked the theme from Pulp Fiction.

Anyway, the Peas existed for Top 40 radio. (They still receive NO LOVE by mix show DJ’s, mixtape DJ’s, most urban radio stations, most hip hop mags, etc.) As long as I could ignore them, I didn’t care about the fact that their lyrics sounded as though they were written by Young MC after being thrown down a flight of stairs and beaten with burning hammers. Nor did I have to endure their trite “conscious” side or their “positive and fun” (read: gimmicky) production and hooks.

But Have Fergie and Stifler’s Mom Ever Been Seen in the Same Place at the Same Time?

And then suddenly, some record label exec had an epiphany; “Why don’t we get that rasta-looking guy from that group with the white girl who just made us $50 million to produce all of these other rappers on our roster?” Thus began my single-handed desire to see will.i.am (aka K-os in poverty) be gone. The problem with Will producing other artists is that he’s only good at one thing: making simple, shiny, catchy beats and hooks for a white girl who pees herself. Forget that, he’s REALLY good at that kind of music. (That Sergio Mendes album he did for Starbucks isn’t that bad either).

But once he gets into the studio with The Game or Common or or Nas, he’s exposed as a gimmicky b-boy whose style is straight Silly Putty. You want some lifeless, fake Dilla/?uestlove ambient noodling? Listen to the will.i.am joint on Common’s new album (I literally can’t remember the name of the song) if you REALLY want to hear “Stakes is High” replayed on a Rhodes and then really, really sucking ass, listen to that song on The Game’s last album. And the joint he did on Justin Timberlake’s album sounded like what happens when Pharrell gets less than $50,000 for a track. And let’s not even talk about “I Love My Bitch.”

When I hear songs like “Hip Hop is Dead” or “Fergalicious,” it’s like listening to the hip hop version of the king of ADD comedy, Dane Cook. While Cook packs jokes while telling jokes about a joke that started with two jokes and ending in a pile of jokes. Will.i.am (aka Whoopi’s forgotten son) jam-packs these songs with 342 breaks, interludes, bridges, hooks, pauses, live drums, sampled drums, Spanish innuendos, chopped and screwed vocals, etc. In the end, you can’t remember anything but the hook. Instead of the above mentioned artists going to the real source for actual hip hop-inspired hip hop (i.e. Pete Rock, Diamond D, DJ Scratch, Premier), Will.i.am gets the nod because he wears velvet jackets and riding boots and sells 56 million ringtones.So Will…The Way I See It…If Adding One Cracker to the Group Doubled Your Sales, Adding A Second Cracker Will Quadruple Them. I Mean, C’mon, I Can’t Be Worse Than Apl De. Ap. Can I?

Yeah, He may be an ill breakdancer and he may have been signed by Eazy-E back in the 90s, but will.i.am makes Diet Coke Rap Beats. And don’t even get me started on the movie Be Cool. There’s a truly cringe-worthy scene where John Travolta and Uma Thurman revise their famous dancing scene from Pulp Fiction to the sounds of…”Sexy” by Black Eyed Peas.

Peep will.i.am’s verse Mind you, these rhymes were written by a 30+ year old man whose been signed since the early 90s. Whose name wasn’t Cam’ron. Or R. Kelly. Or K7.

Behold:

“You take me to ecstasy

Without takin' ecstasy

It’s exactly like ecstasy

When you layin right next to me

I'm sexin' you, sexin' you

You sexin' me, sexin' me

It's feels so damn natural

But we doin' so naturally

I'm liking yourubbin' me

And you liking me rubbin' you”

To quote Shawn Carter, what more can I say?Download: (Because It’s Okay, Everyone Kinda’ Liked That First Album)

MP3: Black Eyed Peas-”Joints and Jams”
MP3: Black Eyed Peas-”Que Dices?”

Posted in The Beat Generation | 8 Comments »

Sometimes I Get Kinda’ Peeved at These Weak M.C.’s

If you happened to read my Fuck Yeah Fest preview in the LA Weekly, you may have noticed the “Fuck Nah” section, where I took a rather tame jab at the band Deerhunter. I’ve written about these guys before , so I don’t feel the need to reiterate my sentiments. Besides, I think the entry below aptly summarizes my feelings.

Fuck Nah - Deerhunter

“Deerhunter’s live show reminds me of the first scene in Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, where Bill and Ted awkwardly flail at their instruments while bitching elliptically about the necessity of making a triumphant video to get Eddie Van Halen to teach them how to play guitar. Nowadays, you don’t even need a triumphant video, you just need a good Pitchfork review, which is what the Atlanta noise-rock outfit Deerhunter got earlier this year. Suddenly, in an Emperor’s New Clothing–esque turn, a group whose biggest discernible talent is its knack for self-promotion became one of the biggest buzz bands in indie rock. Let’s hope that, in the span between now and the Fuck Yeah Fest, George Carlin can drop down to Earth in a phone booth and teach them how to no longer be bogus.”

Now did I say that Deerhunter are the worst live band I’ve ever seen? No. Are they? Definitely. Did I call them a cut-rate indie Marilyn Manson? No, but I probably should’ve. But that’s besides the point. You see Friday morning, lo and behold, I received an e-mail from Deerhunter lead singer Bradford “40 Year-Old Virgin” Cox. At first, I was planning on keeping the correspondence between us, figuring that it was the more mature and professional thing thing to do. Of course, since Cox is neither of those two things, he posted the entire exchange on his blog. Since none of you guys actually read the Deerhunter blog, (I imagine you probably aren’t much interested in quasi-child porn and poop), I’ll re-post it here in honor of my buddy, Bradford Cox, a class act nonpareil.

A Portrait of the (Con) Artist as a Young Man?

On 8/24/07, Bradford Cox wrote:

its bradford! from deerhunter! i was just wondering if maybe you
could give us some quick EMERGENCY lessons on our instruments
before our set sunday. we are kind of nervous… you know L.A. = big
city = could be our big break. we don’t want to look stupid so if you
could just teach the guitar players some basic power chords or
something it would really help us out. i’ll be busy giving blowjobs to other
more talented (notable) music journalists so as to keep those good reviews
rolling in.

look forward to seeing you this weekend
your pal,
brad

On Aug 24, 2007, at 12:54 PM, Jeff Weiss wrote:

I could respond to your e-mail sarcastically, but I won’t.

I could lace this thing with expletives but what’s the point?

The fact is that you are probably in one of the most critically
acclaimed bands out right now. Why care so much about one
writer who doesn’t care for your music? Is it really worth your time to
write sarcastic e-mails? It’s not going to change my mind or hurt my
feelings. I’m sorry you have such a low self-worth and lack of
confidence in your band.

Do you really think you make some form of populist music that
EVERYONE will like. To quote Wayne’s World: Led Zeppelin didn’t write
songs that everyone liked. They left that to the Bee Gees. That’s a
joke. You’re supposed to laugh. Or do you even have a sense of humor?

I really have no interest in continuing some sort of stupid
beef. I’m not the kind of person that carries grudges. I make jokes and I
write about music. That’s about it. I’m sorry you don’t find them funny.
Unlike you, I’ve gotten used to the fact that I can’t be everything to
all the people all the time.

So good luck at the show this weekend. Have fun in the “big
city,” and remember not to bite on those music-journalist blowjobs.

Sincerely,
Jeff Weiss

On 8/24/07, Bradford Cox wrote:

you do realize that everything you wrote just now was much
funnier than your article? i. am. joking. around.
but i will fight you.
and having low self worth is what i make a living from.

bradford

p.s. on a serious note does all of your writing somehow manage to
reference early 90’s stoner comedy? i.e. bill and ted / wayne’s
world? if so you are a genius…

On Aug 24, 2007, at 3:38 PM, Jeff Weiss wrote:

do you really want to fight me? Because I will fight you. I
promise.

And no, in addition to referencing 90s stoner comedy, sometimes, I
mention Dennis Cooper. I hear he’s the cat’s meow.

On 8/24/07, Bradford Cox wrote:
you don’t want to bring dennis cooper into this. next thing you
know you’ll be getting raped and disemboweled. he’s into freaky shit.

On Aug 24, 2007, at 3:52 PM, Jeff Weiss wrote:

sounds like a fun Friday night activity. Does this sort of thing
cost money or is it gratis?

On 8/24/07, Bradford Cox wrote:

its free but you have to sign a contract so vice can film it and use
your likeness on their website. do you have good lawyers?

On Aug 24, 2007, at 3:55 PM, Jeff Weiss wrote:

I’m Jewish. Duh.

On 8/24/07, Bradford Cox wrote:

is everyone in L.A. jewish?

Jeff Weiss Wrote:

Just the Jews.

In Response to Your Question Linus, the answer is Vanity Googling Themselves 5,432 Times a Day

Ultimately, I sort of feel bad for the little guy. It must be tough to constantly have to contrive new gimmicks to shock hipsters, troll the Internet narcissistically searching for any and all criticism, and go through life looking like Mr. Burns from the X-Files episode of The Simpons where Homer and the people of Springfield mistake him for a space alien. It must be a bitch finding the time to practice.

I Bring You Love…I Bring You Peace

Now That I’m Back to Normal, I Bring You Fear, Famine, Pestilence…

I imagine Grandmaster B was just kidding when he offered to fight me (something just tells me he just isn’t the rugged outdoorsy type), but if by some chance you were serious, feel free to give me a call, pal. Maybe a boxing match? A little something on pay-per-view? Maybe your more “talented and notable” friends can sponsor it. If at first they refuse, I’m sure we can figure out a way that you can convince them (wink wink, nudge, nudge). Hope you had a great time in Los Angeles this weekend and good luck with your career. You’ll need it. Just be sure to stock up on the chapstick.

Download:
MP3: The Notorious BIG-”What’s Beef?”

Posted in Best Of | 49 Comments »

Echo Park…Fuck Yeah?

This weekend is the fourth annual Fuck Yeah Fest, two nights full of freaky, eclectic music determined to prove once and for all, that hipsters know how to fuck. Or something. I’ve never heard of 1/4 of the bands slated to play, but at the very least, they all promise to be interesting. I’ve done a very strange preview for the LA Weekly, breaking down the acts into three categories: Fuck Yeah, Fuck Eh, and Fuck Nah. Needless to say, the Fuck Nah category involves me drawing an analogy between Deerhunter and the first scene of Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure. Does it involve a man named Rufus and/or the word “bogus?” You’ll have to click below to find out.

Preview of Fuck Yeah Fest at The LA Weekly

Download:
MP3: Indian Jewelry-”Lesser Snake”
MP3: Indian Jewelry-”Health and Wellbeing”

MP3: Wooden Shjips-”Shrinking Moon for You”

So-Crates Johnson Presents This Week’s Links

I’m sure most of you guys have seen it already, but Sach Orenstein’s Living with Baduizm feature at Oh Word is a must read.

Berkeley Place is looking for your votes on the Top 10 Modern Film Soundtrack Singles. Hopefully, “Wu-Wear” counts.

Paul Tao, the man behind Hate Something Beautiful and I Am Sound Records is putting out a single of Nico Vega’s “Cocaine Cooked the Brain.” Go here for details to find out if those
“Just Say No to Drugs” ads from the 80’s were actually true.

Floodwatch and From Da Bricks collaborate to decide the Top 5 Best Pete Rock remixes (with Mp3’s)

Skeet on Mischa has been blogging regularly again, which maketh me glad (yes, maketh).

The Assimilated Negro breaks down “Silent Treatment” from the Roots’ Do You Want More?

Circa 45 posts on the original vinyl single for the Flaming Lips’ “She Don’t Use Jelly” a song forever enshrined in pop culture lore, thanks to a 90210 Peach Pit performance so good that even Steve Sanders had to admit he liked it, despite “not being all that into this alternative rock.”

Posted in LA Weekly | 4 Comments »

10 Reasons Why You Should Come to Now Blog This Tonight

10. Because if you don’t come, Aaron Kyle, lead singer of Le Switch, will actually beat you with le switch.

9. Because if you don’t, I will cry myself to sleep tomorrow night. And by cry, I mean drink.

8. Because if you don’t, The Deadly Syndrome will actually give you a Deadly Syndrome. I’m not sure which one yet, but don’t rule out Anthrax.

7. Because there is no possible way that the show can be as bad as its name.

6. To see if Aquarium Drunkard can actually drink an entire Aquarium’s worth of liquor. I wouldn’t bet against him.

5. To see Kevin Bronson get as buzzed as the name of his column would suggest.

4. To hear Jax from Rock Insider and Joe from Radio Free Silverlake spinning between sets. And juggling.

3. Because though I’ve never actually met the good folk from LA Underground, judging from the seedy connotations of their name, they would seem to be excellent people to score drugs from (and by drugs, I actually mean drugs).

2. For the opportunity to see me do a live and possibly spontaneous rant about hipsters in fedoras. And more importantly, for the opportunity to see whether or not I actually have enough pull to get the doorman to turn away the wanna-be Humphrey Bog-tards.

1. So in ten years, when all the bands on this bill are playing really big venues and engaging in Motley Crue-esque levels of debauchery, you can tell all your friends that you saw them way back when. (Provided that you don’t tell them that the show was called Now Blog This, they’ll totally think you’re awesome).

The show starts at 9 and it’s only $5. Phoenix and the Turtle go on at 9:30, Le Switch at 10:15, The Deadly Syndrome at 11:00 and Aushua at 11:45. Be there or be a quadrilateral.

Download:
MP3: The Deadly Syndrome-”Eucalyptus”
MP3: The Deadly Syndrome-”Winter in You”

MP3: Le Switch-”Tongue Tied”
MP3: Le Switch-”Living in Another World”

Download tracks at Aushua’s Myspace

Phoenix and the Turtle on Myspace

Posted in Miscellany | 3 Comments »

Great Scott: Green with Angry

Scott Towler has returned once again, this time with an official name for his column: “Great Scott” selected in honor of an expression popularized by a slightly eccentric Hill Valley scientist named Dr. Emmett Lathrop Brown. It’s also called Great Scott because Scott is descended from Ivan the Great (as well as Ivan the Terrible)

It all started with a memo that we received here at Scrubs last week encouraging all shows to “Go Green.” They listed a variety of ways that we could make changes to better the environment, and even had us appoint a “Green Team Captain” in our production office. His or her job would then be to report back to ABC on the progress we were making as a show.

They were simple things at first: encouraging car pooling, recycling plastic, aluminum, glass and paper products, and finding and kidnapping Ed Begley Jr. and making him do all the work for us. But did it stop there? Of course not. So I got my hands on the “Green Team” handbook which raised some questions. Most importantly: why hadn’t this been electronically distributed to everyone on staff? Not just here at Scrubs, but everywhere, from ABC to NBC, even to the succubus known as CBS. Why wasn’t this ‘handbook’ published independently and then handed out to anyone that works in the business? Did other studios and lots have their own policies. And if they did, does smoking weed count as being green-friendly?

Needless to say, I had lofty goals. Since ABC was spearheading the “going green” contest, I assumed they’d be more than willing to meet and talk about it. Naturally, that would allow us to discuss, in depth, just what they were trying to achieve. So I called ABC. Twice. I emailed their point person, who shall remain nameless, and didn’t hear back. So I emailed him again and got a two line response: “Let’s do this with Jane Doe, our PR person. Kudos!” Great. Thanks for those kudos’. I emailed back requesting the PR person’s name and still never heard back, so I took it one step further and emailed ABC’s green team directly. even emailing them the list of questions I had, in hopes that they would read them. I am sad to say that as of 12:00 o’clock noon on Friday, August 17, 2007 I’ve yet to hear a word. I suppose that’s what I get for writing it in Aramaic.

Converting to Rastafarianism? Tacitly Encouraged at ABC Studios

So this is the dichotomy: a company that cares enough about the environment to create Green ‘legislature,’ but doesn’t care enough to speak with someone who wants to actively spread the word about what they’re doing. Because of that, I’m not really sure that ABC gets the picture . Moreover, if they do, they certainly aren’t practicing what they preach. And I know it’s a bad move to bite the hand that feeds you, but this is an important issue. One that should be taken even more seriously by the huge economic and pop-culture influences in the world today and not just Leonard “Really I’m Deep, I Swear” DiCaprio.

Instead, I sit here considering how of all the industries in Los Angeles, Entertainment (at large) creates the 2nd most amount of pollution in the city. Think about that. All the cars, all the dirty streets and problems…the entertainment industry helps make it happen. And not just because of Rush Hour 3. So ABC, after resuming to respond to me I can only assume that you’re more talk than Larry King and Tom Leykis locked in room with nothing but credit cards, mirrors and mountains of cocaine. At a time when ABC should be acting on their words, they’re just playing the Hollywood game and only caring about appearance. Which is strange because it never seemed to matter all those years when they showed According to Jim.

Download:
MP3: Lord Quasimoto-”Greenery”
MP3: Goodie Mobb-”Greeny Green”

Posted in Great Scott | No Comments »

Beards, Blazers & Glasses: Sunset Junction

A few years ago, Sunset Junction was all leather-clad gay guys (some resembling South Park’s Mr. Slave) bumping shoulders with the area’s primarily Hispanic residents. It was sort of like going to a Morrissey concert. But things are different now: the first wave of gentrification came and went, transforming these formerly dicey gang-ridden blocks into a bohemian enclave, flooded with coffee shops, designer boutiques and the bearded, bespectacled hipstacrites who love them.

Today, the Junction is hirsute Hollywood ex-pats rocking $100 fedoras and 15-year girls dressed like Corey Kennedy straining for a glimpse of hometown indie pin-up boy Alex “Sea Wolf” Church after hearing “You’re a Wolf” on Indie 103 and catching the video on MTV2. I suppose indie is the new grunge (which makes Page France the new Collective Soul…kidding….kinda), but I don’t see what that has to do with dudes in designer hats. Newsflash hipster males: you aren’t Humphrey Fucking Bogart. And hipster females, you look more Britney than Bacall.

But I digress, there I was stumbling around incoherently at 5:45, shortly after Sea Wolf had finished his 40-minute performance, in the process whipping the Junior High set into a sweaty hormonal hysteria (it was the Teen Wolf cover of “Big Bad Wolf” that did it). The sun was starting to tilt, the beer line was starting to scream my name (in Dutch, as it was sponsored by Amstel), I was excited to see Autolux for the first time since they opened for The White Stripes a few years ago at the Greek.

Overcoming Sound Difficulties: The Autolux of the Irish

Autolux is probably LA’s most critically well-regarded band for two reasons. The first is that they’re obviously influenced by Sonic Youth and critics always like bands influenced by Sonic Youth unless they sound too much like Sonic Youth. The other reason is that they’re actually good. However, they started slow tonight, with the first few songs plagued by sound problems and maybe a bit of nerves. But drawing on their Future Perfect material, they soon hit their stride, with drummer/singer Carla Azar delivering poltergeist vocals blanketed in thick white noise, lead guitarist/singer, Greg Edwards playing the Thurston Moore role and crushing sludgy stoner guitar licks like a Creation shoegazer band after smoking some New York Soul Diesel.

Next, was Blonde Redhead, who other than Sonic Youth might’ve been the most logical band to follow Autolux. I saw Blonde Redhead once when they opened for Interpol at the Grand Olympic Auditorium. I liked them well enough, but I walked away disappointed that they had neither blondes nor redheads. That’s blatant false advertising. Take a look at The Parson Redheads. They have at least two people in the band at all times with red hair.

Yeah, yeah, I know what you’re going to say. Blonde Redhead are underground legends, how dare I not know much about them, why don’t I just lock myself up in the closet with nothing but a pair of shoes and shoegaze until I go blind. I get it. My excuse (if I have one) has to do with the fact that I didn’t go to Vassar and thus am instinctively am wary of bands fronted by female Japanese art-rock students with squeaky voices (not a gender or a racial thing, it’s a Deerhoof thing). But watching their hour-long performance, it’s safe to say I’ve drank the Blonde Red Kool-Aid. They were flat-out spectacular.

Blonde Redhead: They Have Neither Blondes Nor Redheads…Discuss

Front-woman Kazu Makino is effortless on-stage and attractive in a Yoko Ono but actually hot sort of way. Grandmaster Kaz has no need for the histrionic affectations of Karen O, she’s all loose limbs and smoothness, slinging the guitar across her shoulders, and unleashing her frail gorgeous wail across the miasma of concrete and fedoras stretching across Sunset Blvd. Lead guitarist, co-lead singer and Wayne Coyne look-a-like, Amadeo Pace played Makino’s perfect foil, delivering rumbling messy guitars and haunting vocals that balanced out the attack. The set was transcendent, drawing heavily from this year’s excellent 23 and reminding me a bit of Love’s set three years ago: a legendary underground band rising above the cluttered bedlam of the Junction and delivering a set for the ages, a performance unlikely to be topped all weekend.

By the time I returned from a short interlude at Weiss headquarters (a mere three blocks from the festivities), Ben Harper was performing, with a crowd that epitomizing the new Sunset Junction (now with $400,000 luxury condos): frat boys and ersatz rockers from Malibu, sorority girls cloaked in Kitson and of course, the old-guard, seemingly a bit confused as to when the Sunset Junction became the Sunset Strip. As for the bearded set, most were long gone by this point, shuddering at the thought of getting their eyes poked out by a stray incense stick being wielded by a Harper-loving hippie. To further compound the troubles was the fact that despite organizers charging a whopping $15 for entrance, they ran out of drink tickets by 9:00, meaning that the crowd was forced to endure a hippie-music show stone-sober. Egads.

As for Harper, I’ll be the first one to admit I know absolutely nothing about his music. I actually purchased one of his DVD’s for a girlfriend once, but we broke up before I could give it to her. I was too lazy to return it and now it hangs on my DVD shelf like a dread-locked albatross. Naturally, it remains unopened. Live, Harper was no slouch on the guitar and was even sorta’ interesting when he indulged his funk and reggae side. But when he veered back to straight-forward rock n’ roll, well…the beer was out and so was I. Time to head home.

Download:
MP3: Autolux-”Turnstile Blues”
MP3: Blonde Redhead-”23″

Posted in Beards, Blazers, & Glasses | 2 Comments »