Big Black Delta

Pitchfork posted this earlier today. Great tune. Big Black Delta caught my ear on a mixtape (okay, it wasn't a tape but a playlist, but old terminology can die quite hard) a friend made me a few years ago. However, until about right now they had kind of fallen back into the ethers of my brain. This song has returned them (really 'him', as I believe BBD is the work of one man, Jonathan Bates)

Passion Pit

Initially I hated this song. Now I love it. Based on this picture that's been floating around the internet I think Passion Pit is probably pretty awesome aesthetically and that the radio-play is a fluke. Good for them. There's an obvious Flaming Lips correlation as far as live environment is concerned. Just looking at this makes me feel wonderful!!!

image courtesy of the always wonderful Brooklyn Vegan

Anyway, I listened to a bit more of their most recent album, Gossamer, and it sounds like a cross between Junior Senior and M83. Interesting...

GUMMO

Since the first time I saw it, back in 1999, Harmony Korine's Gummo has been one of my all-time favorite films. You can say it's exploitative, disgusting, morose. Whatever. It is partly all those things. But it is also a deep and fragile beauty that I feel it is good to be reminded of, as in reminded how to find that beauty in the often ugly and disturbing world we live in.

If you've not seen it, I strongly suggest watching it. Here's a link to the entire film on youtube:

Stereophonics - Indian Summer

Somehow my wife and I totally missed that Stereophonics' new record, Graffiti on the Train, was released about a a week and a half ago. Here's a review at drownedinsound.

Telefon Tel Aviv - The Birds

GBV - I am a Scientist/Everywhere w/ Helicopter

and my favorite GBV song (maybe):

Harry Howard and the NDE

Henry Rollins played a song by this band earlier this evening on his radio show and I immediately loved it. Harry Howard is of course the younger brother of the late/great Roland S. Howard. Harry and the NDE's bandcamp is located here. Drop by, it's cool. And if you don't know Rowland here's a little intro to a band he was in with a certain Mr. Cave:

Boards of Canada - Gyroscope

Watching Sinister for the 2nd time in a week made me have to post this. I loved the film anyway, but first time through the fact that out of nowhere one of my favorite BOC songs popped up was a wonderful little surprise that endeared it and the filmmakers to me forever.

Queens of the Stone Age Return in June

Of course the one day I don't check their website is the day it updates and they announce the release of their new record, apparently entitled Like Clockwork, will be in June. If you go to their website, here every time you hit the refresh you'll hear another snippet from the new record. But I do mean snippet. As in a couple of seconds worth. It's cool, but not nearly enough to get me through to June.

More info here at Antiquiet who "broke" the info last night or here at Pitchfork.

Savages - She Will

Looks like I picked a good time to discover this band, as their new album is out in May. This is the first song they've released off of it.

4 Minutes of Ninjas fighting from GIJOE 2

Ain't It Cool News just linked this. I know the first one wasn't a "good" movie, but I dug the hell out of it. Heck, it was like they made one of the old school cartoon episodes into a live action. This one had me the moment I saw this:

They got the mask right!!! And is that Firefly in the background? WOWBOBWOW, as long as they have that I'll even forgive the lack of sexpot The Baroness.

Death Grips - Lock Your Doors (No Hands #6)

This was JUST posted on pitchfork. As always, Death Grips continues to fascinate the hell outta me. go here to read about how the video was filmed abnd watch a pitchfork clip of them discussing plans for the future.

Kaiser Chiefs - On the Run

This is one of two brand new songs on the forthcoming collection of KC's singles, Souvenir: The Singles 2004-2012

Clown on Clown Violence Has Me in Stitches

Ah, how I love Bloodydisgusting. Earlier today they came through with not only the redband trailer for British clown horror flick 'Stitches' but they posted an exclusive clip that had me laughing (and gagging! Pulling a rabbit out of the ol' hat will never be the same again in my eyes!)

Go here to watch the redband trailer - it's awesome!!!

Mojo Walker: Big Blues Done Right!!!

Full Disclosure: This is a good friend's band. However, let that not dissuade you. These guys are GOOD. I'm not really a fan of straight up Blues, but this is Blues done right. The amazing thing is this friend of mine, who is the songwriter and 'orchestrater' of the project, had never played the blues before last April, when he just suddenly woke up one day and decided, "Hmmm, I think I'm going to make a Blues band".

They play the Hard Rock Cafe in Chicago tonight, if anyone is free I personally guarantee it will be a GREAT show.

Savages - Husbands

Oh, this is even better than the previous post. Nice.

Savages - Husbands

Kas Product - So Young But So Cold

Further proof that you can learn something new about music from the past everyday. I'd never heard of Kas Product or for that matter the scene it is associated with. My discovery began last week when I was skulking around the always awesome heavenisanincubator and found this:

I really dug Feurerbahn and went back today to buy the album. In looking at the tags on the bandcamp I saw a term I'd never seen before - Cold Wave.

Hmmmm....

So I googled Cold Wave. Apparently Cold Wave had a little lift off in the late 70's/early 80's and derives its name from a quote by Siouxsie and the Banshees, where they described their music as "cold, machine-like and passionate at the same time".

Next I found this discogs entry which led me to this allmusic entry. From there it wasn't far until I found Kas Product.

Good stuff.

Sinister - Maybe the Best Horror Sound Design Ever

I finally watched 2012's Sinister last night. I missed it at the theatre last October and had been waiting to see it ever since. I'd heard a lot of good things about it from people whose opinions I trust and I am ALWAYS looking for genuinely scary horror movies so I had a pretty mean case of anticipation/expectation, which can be a dangerous way to go into a flick for the first time.

So what's the verdict? Well, the movie blew me away. There were a few little issues with the supporting cast*, but nothing that can't be overlooked based on how adamantly it was committed to be HORROR. The ending was awesome. But what was even more awesome was the sound design. Holy cow, this is probably the best sound design in a horror flick I've ever heard. I mean, granted it has an edge with modern technology over flicks like Halloween and The Exorcist, so we need to adjust for that, but seriously, it was fantastic. After watching the film I went immediately to purchase the score online and found this great blog The End of Summer that posted some of the tracks left off that album.

...........................

* Primarily the wife, played by Juliet Rylance. I donn't think it's Ms. Rylance's fault but her chaaracter was really nothign more than a plot device, acting the way the story needed her to act by constantly riding Ethan Hawke's Ellison and throwing down ultimatums to amp his character's arc's timeline up. Still, totally overlooking that based on EVERYTHING else about the film. Also, as long as I'm crituqing the 'bad' about the supporting cast I should give props to the fantastic. James Ransone - who plays Deputy "so and so" is absolutely fantastic as a cop who, against his sheriff's decree, wants to act as Ellison's inside information man just to get a thank you in the next book. I expect we'll see more good stuff from Mr. Ransone, he was just that good.

RIP Shannon Larratt 1973-2013

I don't know all that much about this man, or about the body hacking/grinding culture in general. However, since reading Warren Ellis' Doktor Sleepless - which originally exposed me to the movement in the first place six years ago or so - I've kept a periodic eye on some of what develops in those circles. As someone interested in the manner in which science fiction becomes science it seems to me this is where a lot of that is happening. I'd read a few posts about Shannon Larratt on Klint Finley's wonderful technoccult and that is where I learned of his death this morning. I don't know that I would have even written about this if not for the reaction I had to reading his farewell letter. It is remarkable. Sad, but remarkable. You can read portions of the letter here.

Rob Zombie on the Lords of Salem

Rob Zombie Talks 'The Lords of Salem' and... by DM-Exclusives

thanks to the awesome Bloodydisgusting for posting this.

SLEEP - June 19th, 2011 - Oakland, CA @ Eli's Mile High Club

Now for some metal before bed.

Jeffrey Osbourne ends all things... JK - just the drinking/posting

We Have Band remixed by Cage and Avairy

jay Lumen - Drop That

Rain Within Her Hands - Bella Morte

Evil Dead

It is OFFICIALLY maddening to wait for this any longer, but wait I will!!!

New Bibio and Let's Talk About Steerage from Scotland

Bibio first came to my attention about four years ago on the BRILLIANT Mario Cotto's program, Saturday nights on Los Angeles' public radio KCRW. I don't get a chance to listen to Mr. Cotto very often these days, as I'm usually in bed by the time his show comes on. Anyway, it was on Mr. Cotto's show several years ago that I made a primordial connection with one of Bibio's songs - it was so like I had heard it before, but I had no idea where or when. Here's the song:



Well, after some time I found out that my connection wasn't really to this Bibio song - I don't think it's this that I heard before, I just think that it invokes the same tone as the tracks I know by the band Steerage from Scotland. Unfortunately Steerage is no more - hasn't been for quite some time - and there seems to be nowhere on the web I can embed from. Instead, follow the link below to their last.FM page and check out their marvelously contemplative instrumental music!

http://www.last.fm/music/Steerage

I discovered Steerage on a whim while in Dublin and shopping at the now (tearfully) defunct Road Records, the same place where several years prior to the Steerage-discovering trip I finally found the Damien Frost record I'd been searching for since seeing them at Whelan's.

Both Steerage and Bibio evoke womb-like inner thought from their music and it always sends me into a deeply contemplative mindset - especially like now, when I've probably had too many beers and have been functioning on very little sleep for almost an entire week now. Thus what I'm almost sure is babble by now. Babble babble. Babble. Babbledy babbledy bab.

Now, Babble.

Morgan Page feat. Nadia Ali - Carry Me

Harmony Korine's Spring Breakers

Facts (according to Shawn):

1) Harmony Korine's Gummo is in my top five favorite films of all time. Because of this I see everything he does. It's not all good, but when it's good, it's good.

2) I'm fairly certain James Franco is the next Gary Oldman.

3) Next Friday my friend Michael and I are going to see Spring Breakers. I'm pretty sure it's amazing. I'm also pretty sure it's a lot weirder than the pop elements of it (disney girls going bad, Franco, skrillux, tits) would have the masses believe. I'm pretty sure it's going to alienate some folk.

Drinking and Posting

image courtesy of bythepint.com

what follows is essentially a drunken mix tape. I'm drinking and on little sleep and stream of consciousnessing this - except where I'm totally biting Jason Bentley of KCRW's style, as he's on the radio live from SXSW on LA's public radio KCRW and really playing some AMAZING music. I'm not posting it all here, but I'm reiterating a lot of it while jumping around to random associations my mind is taking me to.

Alien Sex Fiend - Clockwork Banana, Banana Moon

I like a lot of weird music. This is among the weirdest.

Contemplating Swamp Thing, Old and New

Posted an article here on Joup earlier about the end of Scott Snyder and Yanick Paquette's run on Swamp Thing (issue #18 came out this past Wednesday and wrapped it up). This led to me beginning a re-reading of Alan Moore, Steve Bissette and John Totleben's Swamp Thing run from 1984, the run that basically introduced Moore to American comics (thanks to Karen Berger) and changed the industry on this side of the pond, almost single-handedly launching DC's Vertigo line and very clearly inspiring Neil Gaiman's Sandman. While re-reading I came upon this line, both in  the beginning of chapter #6 (originally issue #26). It is BEYOND mastery of language:

"I used to think I knew from fear... I didn't. All I knew were the suburbs of fear... and now here I am, in the big city."

Wow.

Afghan Whigs Joined By... Usher on Stage???

Well, the sound sucks and it would have been great to have a full song instead of this jump around crap, but this is still an anomaly worth posting. I don't care too much for Usher (not at all really, from the little I know. I'm more of a Maxwell guy) but I LOVE the Whigs, so the completist in me is posting this for the other completists out there.

Flaming Lips Live @ SXSW - Are You a Hypnotist?

This is awesome, but what's even freakin' cooler is Brooklyn Vegan's pictures of the Lips last night as they performed Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots live in it's entirety for apparently the first time ever.

I'm VERY hot and cold with the Lips. I got into them later than my friends (mainly Mr. Brown) - I always liked what I heard but not enough to actually become a fan. Brown saw them live way back when Tool was opening for THEM (crazy, right?) in like '93 or '94. He'd describe their awesome live show and it sounded great but somehow it never spurred me to accompany him (in my defense it wasn't always that I could get off work for shows back then - like now - so I had to pick and choose). Anyway, the first time I did see them was the Flaming Lips Boombox experiment at the Metro in Chicago, not sure what year but late 90's probably. It was awesome, but it wasn't them performing per se. They brought 50 folks out of the crowd, had 25 sit on one side of the stage and 25 on the other, then passed out 50 boomboxes and 50 bags of color-coded tapes. Wayne then 'conducted' the participants to insert and play various tapes at various times. It was pretty rad. I was closer to being a fan, but didn't take the first plunge until The Soft Bulletin blew my fucking head off - how was this the same band? That predates Radiohead's likewise similar change between OK Computer and Kid A (Kid A is my favorite Radiohead record and I wasn't really a fan until it's release) and was really the first time I'd seen a modern band pull such an massive evolutionary step. The only problem with the Soft Bulletin was it made me so sad I really had to be careful around it.

Flash forward to 2002 and on one of our first dates my then-girlfriend, now-wife brought me to see the Lips on their Yoshimi tour at Chicago's Riviera Theatre and it was the whole fabled spectacle - bubbles, stuffed animal suits, confetti, etc. When describing that show I've always said it was a celebration of being alive. It made me cry. Only other show to do that was Bjork at Chicago's Civic Opera house.

But I digress - What's my point? I dig this video, and the concept for this upcoming concept record The Terror. But I liked a lot of what I heard about Embryonic before it's release, even really liked the first single, but the record ended up falling flat for me. In fact, I haven't liked a lot of what the Lips have done since Yoshimi. Was this due to after waiting years for Christmas on Mars and then having Mr. Brown send it to me only to find that I loved it both visually and sonically but absolutely HATED the dialogue in it (I talk more in depth about my disappointment with that here)? I don't know. Then the band did Dark Side of the Moon and it sounded cool but fell flat for me when I heard it (though it may not have if I'd heard it live). Now the band is doing commercials and I'm weary of that. But this upcoming album again, like all Lips album's since I drank about half the glass of kool aid, has me really curious. Maybe it will be the album that finally does for their later career what Hit to Death in the Future Head and Telepathic Surgery did to their older stuff for me.

Maybe.

New Death Grips On the Horizon?

I find Death grips endlessly fascinating. And props to Pitchfork for always having great interviews with them. My favorite is here

American Mary

This is the theatrical trailer. The Red Band is a bit more... intense but I also think it gives more away. I have a good feeling about this one. I'm thinking something bitterly disturbing but worth it in the ballpark of Martyrs.

And in case you don't recognize her, if you're a Ginger Snaps fan like I am (part 2 RULES) that's Ginger -  Katharine Isabelle - herself, all grown up.

A Veronica Mars Movie?

This video reminded me just how damn awesome the show was and how attached I am to the characters. I didn't watch it when it was on, nor the first time through when my wife bought the DVD sets. However, about a year and a half ago something piqued my curiosity and we sat down over the course of however many weeks and watched the whole three season run, and it was fantastic, though it ends rather abruptly in season three and, like so many great shows do, leaves you hanging for something that's probably never gone come...

But now it might! Creator Rob Thomas has announced a Kickstarter campaign and shot a GREAT little video to introduce us to it - and to reacquaint us with the main characters and remind us what it was we loved about the show. Seriously - this video is fantastic.

And oh what a show...

The first season of VM especially is something I would put up with the best tv has ever had to offer. For me there's Breaking Bad, then there's Twin Peaks (it's only within the last two years that that order has emerged - I've been in love with Twin Peaks since the night the pilot aired and I just happened to watch it, waaaay back in what I believe was 1990) and then number three is probably season 1 of Veronica Mars. It's just that damn good; such a strong tone that runs through the entire thing, top to bottom, front to back. And so many great and complex characters, not to mention dozen of endearing little moments that stuck in my head only to re-surface on an almost daily basis (Vinnie Van Lowe singing Hall and Oats' Private Eyes to Veronica as a makeshift threat springs to mind immediately).

David Bowie - The Next Day

image courtesy of http://blog.kexp.org/

What does it say that two of the now most old school guys still making GREAT music released two of their finest records ever this year? First there was last month's marvelous Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds' record Push the Light Away and now there's David Bowie's The Next Day. I'm planning on doing a joint review of both records on Joup in the next couple days but in the meantime suffice it to say that tonight I purchased The Next Day on iTunes specifically to receive their particular Deluxe Edition which includes three extra songs that apparently are not on the hard copy. This even though I look at that cover above and absolutely LUST after the Vinyl. Maybe at some point in the future I'll splurge, but for now I'm on my first pass through the album and it is fantastic.

Nothing -Downward Years to Come

This band is seriously awesome. $5 on their bandcamp for the album.

I allotted myself two albums to buy this week; it was originally intended to be the David Bowie The Next Day, which came out today, and last week's How to Destroy Angels. Well, I bought the Bowie but I decided to buy Downward Years to Come instead of the HTDA, which I'll buy soon anyway. I just really wanted to give Nothing my money.

New Song from The Ocean (Collective) means New Album!!!

One of my favorite bands from the last ten years is Germany's The Ocean (Collective). All the band's records are fantastic, and with the addition of singer Loic Rossettiand the release of their 2010 albums Heliocentric and Anthropocentric they became something even better. Now in April (geez, really? Again with the April? I will be freakin' broke in April with all the records being released that month!) The Ocean, AKA The Ocean Collective will release Epipelagic. Here's what the group's website had to say about the upcoming record, tell me this isn't amazing:


pe·la·gi·al [puh-ley-jee-uh l] – 1. Of, relating to, or living in open oceans or seas rather than waters adjacent to land or inland waters; such as, pelagic birds. 2. Living or growing at or near the surface of the ocean, far from land, as certain organisms. 3. Of or pertaining to the sea; marine

After 2 years of relentless touring in North America, Europe, Russia, China, Hong Kong, Southeast Asia and Australia, The Ocean have resurfaced with what could be their deepest and most trailblazing piece of work to date, Pelagial: a progressive musical journey, written, recorded, mixed and to-be-performed-live as one single 53-minutes piece of music. Mixed and mastered by Jens Bogren (Opeth, Katatonia, Witchcraft) at Fascination Street Studios in Örebrö, Sweden, Pelagial is set to be released on April 26th / 29th (Europe) and April 30th (North America / world) through Metal Blade Records.


The concept of the album is made evident in its title, Pelagial. Listeners will be further submersed as they journey with the band, beginning at the surface of the ocean and plunging through all five pelagic depth zones: epipelagic, mesopelagic, bathyalpelagic, abyssopelagic, and hadopelagic. In synch with diminishing light and increasing pressure as one dives or sinks deeper into the ocean, the album begins rather light and progressively gets heavier and slows as the band reaches the unfathomable depths of the hadopelagic zone, characterized by complete darkness and a thousandfold increased pressure as compared to surface level. What is remarkable about Pelagial is that this is not some detached conceptual idea; this can actually be heard and felt while listening to the album.



What has me perhaps even more excited about the band's new record is the idea that I might get a chance to see them again on tour. In 2011 while they were touring I was able to catch them at Pomona, CA's The Glass House. They were every bit amazing as I thought they'd be. I did a write up on the that show here. The only draw back to that particular show was that of the four bands that played, The Ocean came all the way from Germany just to open the night with a criminally short set (not their fault). Hopefully this time they'll play a lot longer, as they have so much wonderful material to cover.

New Low Album out march 19th, Stream it now...

...by going here to NPR:

http://www.npr.org/2013/03/10/173452523/first-listen-low-the-invisible-way#playlist

Here's the trailer for the album, which is titled The Invisible Way and is being released via Sub Pop.

New Dillinger Escape Plan Track!!!

Posting this from work, so I haven't even heard it yet. I'll bet it RULES!!!

Nothing - The Dives (Lazarus in Ashes)

I LOVE this band!!! Buy this album here. I did and it's wonderful

Pete Swanson - Life Ends At 30

I'd never heard of Pete Swanson before I was strolling around the interwebs and saw this album cover on Pitchfork:

image courtesy of mexicansummer.com

The tone of this photograph struck such an immediate chord with me that I immediately did a little reading, saw the words "noise artist" and went straight to youtube where I found the above track. I love the way it makes me feel like someone has filled my head with rusty tacks and is ruthlessly shaking my head in a blue strobe-light filled nightclub located in a suburb of hell. I'll be investigating the rest of Mr. Swanson, it's been a while since I've fallen into a noise jag but after this I feel one might just be coming on...

Sapho - Carmel 12" [CJ Siouxsie Sioux Re-edit]

A Library in the Desert?

This is awesome.

Gwar Cover Kansas

And as long as I have Gwar on the brain now, let's do this too. Awesome! (and for the record I HATE the band kansas)

Lordi Lordi Lordi

This is funny as hell. I wasn't able to watch the entire interview, not much of it at all really, but I laughed my ass off just watching the every day mannerisms of these guys in their costumes. The guy on the couch RULES!!! Lordi obviously wear the Gwar influence on their sleeve but that's not necessarily a bad thing. I know nothing about Lordi, though I've seen their name a million times. I found this interview on Blabbermouth followed by the video for a track off their new album. Not too bad as bombastic anthem metal is concerned, though it's not really my thing. It seemed well worth posting though, just for the entertainment value:



And as long as we're doing this, let's go for some Gwar as well:



"How do you hide money from a Hippie? Put it under the soap!"