Jan
17

Dirty Projectors & David Byrne-”Knotty Pine”

Despite being AARP eligible, David Byrne continues to stay cooler than the proverbial polar bear’s toe nails (a simile only usable for the next decade thanks to global warming), teaming with Brooklyn’s finest, Dirty Projectors, to record a track for Dark Was the Night,  a compilation raising money for HIV/Aids charity, Red Hot Organization. Not… Continue reading »

Jan
17

EPMD-”Never Defeat Em” ft. Method Man

Glad to know that Erick and Parish are still making dollars when everything from Circuit City to Saturn (the mediocre automobile, not the planet) have gone the way of the Labrador duck.  As Ian Cohen points out in his Pitchfork review, their last jaunt is surprisingly enjoyable, particularly this Method Man-aided ode to invincibility. Of… Continue reading »

Jan
16

LA Times: John Legend, Vanilla & Sugar

I don’t begrudge John Legend his popularity. I wished I liked the guy more. He seems nice enough, wears argyle, went to Penn. It’s not that he isn’t talented. He’s a nimble piano player and wields a powerful singing voice. That said, there may not be a more cloying performer out there. The guy’s sappier… Continue reading »

Jan
15

LA LA: The Top 10 Local Albums of 2008

How last month of me….However, since I sleep on the hometown scene all-too-frequently, consider this mild penance. 10.  Dengue Fever-Venus on Earth  (M80) Dreamy and druggy psychedelia built on a bedrock worship of 60s Cambodian pop, and the ethereal buoyancy of Chom Nmol’s voice. Adorned with a filagree of B-movie spy scores, Dick Dale surf… Continue reading »

Jan
14

Prefuse 73-”Storm Returns”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlGhG20BkWw While thinking about the Flying Lotus album, I remembered how much I love “Storm Returns.” Probably my favorite thing that Prefuse 73 ever did Download: MP3: Prefuse 73-”Storm Returns”

Jan
14

Great Scott: Interviewed By An Idiot-Zilla Rocca

At times, I’m convinced that Scott Towler and I were the only ones who found Prime Time Glick hilarious. “I’d rather be rapping and blogging at the same time—it’s like DJing my thoughts! On a computer!” – Zilla Rocca 1/7/09 Scott Towler: So what exactly is a Zilla? Zilla Rocca: A female lizard from Armenia.… Continue reading »

Jan
14

T-Rex Wednesday

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xgcxd9wtXUE Because I heard “Telegram Sam” being blared out of a bar last week. Also, because Marc Bolan named his son Rolan. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=du7jfDYe5LI Download: MP3: T. Rex-”Children of the Revolution” MP3: T. Rex-”Telegram Sam”

Jan
13

The Dead-We Strike At Dawn

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMgDUv_F3fw Via Hidden Track. Wanted: book publisher to fork over an advance for me to follow the Dead this summer. Involves acid, the decline of the Hippie dream, and involute analysis of the songs, “Morning Dew,” “Loser,” and “Box of Rain.” I am not joking. Really. I know. Download: MP3: Grateful Dead-”Morning Dew” (from Fillmore… Continue reading »

Jan
13

Diggin in the Digital Crates – Faye Wong’s Restless

  Sach O kills at Chinese 4AD karaoke and still prefers reverb on his vocals to autotune. So I’m trading music and talking shit with Douglas “No one on the corner got Fresh Cherries like Us” Martin and the subject of 4AD came up. To me, one of the lazier cliches in music writing last… Continue reading »

Jan
12

Brother Ali: The Rope-A-Dope

I’d been wondering why Brother Ali’s, Rope-A-Dope, elicited so little buzz from net-denizens, until cursory research revealed that it’s an odds-and-sods comp, rather than an official mixtape. That said, it’s a highly listenable, if not poorly sequenced collection of Ali rarities that you’ll want if you’re into bald, albino, Twin Cities rappers. Personally, I prefer,… Continue reading »

Older posts «

» Newer posts