We get a lot of emails and press releases these days.  The variety of stuff we have sent to us ranges from requests to cover projects by Slayer to Dakota Fanning and everything in between.  Even through trying to be selective, there often seems to be more to cover than we have time for.  It’s hard not to jump on those Pavement tickets (they’re still so good), but there’s nothing like discovering something new we’ve never seen before.  Sure, we’ve gotten plenty of contacts from acts who have no idea what our interests are or what we care about.  Sometimes they’re “wacky” pop-punk acts or maybe they just care more about acting and dressing like rock stars then actually creating something of substance.  I don’t feel too bad ignoring those type of contacts because, if you don’t know who the fuck we are, then why should I give a fuck about researching and writing about who you are trying to be?  Other times, however, I get that email that reminds me that the original goal was really to help bring attention to quality artists that often get overlooked.  That’s how we discovered some surprising talent that we’ve covered in the past, like Untied States and Edison; through receiving random emails.  Sometimes we get a really nice personalized direct contact that introduces us to someone like stencil artist Paper Monster.  Sometimes it takes quite a few emails before we wise up and realize that we’ve been ignorantly overlooking something amazing, as was the case with one of my favorite newer acts, NURSES.  All too often, I know that timing gets in the way and/or there are just things being lost in the chaos.  A new Brooklyn quintet calling themselves Quiet Lights, has fallen into a mix of a few of these circumstances with us. (more…)

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Thank you and hello again, everybody.  This week our pop-spotlight song of the week comes from a young Los Angeles, California trio calling themselves WAVVES.  Essentially a project of San Deigo native, Nathan Williams, the first two releases from the lo-fi punk outfit were recorded behind the home of Williams‘ parents, launching the young man into the forefront of America‘s burgeoning Garage Rock resurrection.  For the current incarnation, Williams has recruited the late-Jay Reatard‘s former rhythm section, Stephen Pope (bass) and Billy Hayes (drums).  Together they have released the high-energy 12-track gem, King of the Beach, that all the kids are bopping their heads and tapping their toes along to.  Today our spotlight shines on one particular song from this release and it’s corresponding video, which focuses on extra-terrestrials and skateboarding.  Ladies and gentleman, please enjoy “Post Acid“. (more…)

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Last year, Antony and The Johnsons released their first full-length album since the Mercury Prize-winning, I Am A Bird Now, 4 years earlier.  The Crying Light proved to be another minor-masterpiece, cementing Antony Hegarty‘ group as an important musical force, deserving of our continued attention into the new decade.  It even yielded some surprising success on a commercial level, reaching the number one spot on the Billboard European Top 100.  The album release was definitely worth the wait and, as someone who caught him during the supporting tour, Hegarty‘s abilities as a live performer only continue to increase.  Hopes are reasonably high for their next album, but, this time around, the anticipation isn’t taking nearly as long to quell.  In the following months, an EP, LP, and even an art book are slated to be released by the group.  There’s a lot on the horizon, but, for now, we have our first sample of what’s to come, in the form of a new video.

Prior to The Crying Light hitting the metaphorical shelves, it was preceded by the 5-song EP, Another World.  Along with the lead off single/title track, the EP also featured 4 additional songs that didn’t appear on The Crying Light.  For the upcoming release, Swanlights, Hegarty and crew have opted to adopt that concept yet again.  Today marks the UK and European release date for the 5-song, Thank You For Your Love EP [Rough Trade] with the official North American release coming tomorrow (Aug. 24th) through Secretly Canadian.  As could be expected, the song “Thank You For Your Love“, which appears on this EP, is also the lead off single for Swanlights.  Those familiar with Antony‘s early years, know that he moved to Manhattan in 1990 to study experimental theatre at NYU.  This move resulted in Hegarty‘s formation and involvement with his Blacklips theatre collective, which ultimately spawned a good deal of his early musical material with the Johnsons.  The following video for “Thank You For Your Love” is comprised of super 8 footage from that period of Antony‘s life when he first arrived to the city. (more…)

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If you saw our recent post about Rah Digga, then you already know that the emcee has taken the first steps into making her big comeback.  With the current, incredibly weak state of rap music in general, it’s a comforting feeling to know that the first lady of Flipmode will be contributing some actual style, with genuine and articulately crafted verses again.  The first time around, she hit the ground running and there’s no reason to believe that this time will be any different.  In some ways, she almost seemed to come out of nowhere and then disappear the same way.  One day.. poof, she was just gone.  The craziest thing about her return is how, even after all of this time, it makes perfect sense and it doesn’t feel contrived at all [no vocoders].  This is not an AXL Rose with cornrows situation or a VH1 show for has-beens and barely-weres to try and re-achieve some dignity that they once knew.  At this point in her life, it seems as natural as it does necessary.  Sure, she’s a mother now and she probably won’t be rocking that tight leather tank and booty short get-up from the “Imperial” video, but she was always a lot more than that.  She actually has respect for the art-form, instead of just creating a persona.  Because of that, her core elements have remained unchanged and, in many ways, timeless.  Digga still has the same empowering tone and delivery, which commands the listener to take notice and actually pay attention to what she’s talking about.  The most refreshing thing that we’ve witnessed, thus far, is how comfortable she seems to feel in her skin and where she is at in her life.  This is a good thing because, we’re comfortable with it too.

With our last post we introduced you to the video for “This Ain’t No Lil’ Kid Rap“.  That track will be appearing on her upcoming album, Classic, once it’s officially released through Raw Koncept on Sept. 14th.  In preparation of the drop date, we are posting another new track called, “Do Your Numbers“, which you can check out below.  Like the previous song and the rest of the album, “Do Your Numbers” was also produced by Nottz.  Unlike the the previous song, this one is not slated to appear on her new album.  I’m not sure how the whole state of album “singles” operate in this digital age, but this is essentially a B-Side.  Basically, if you do wind up getting a hard copy of “This Ain’t No Lil’ Kid Rap“, perhaps on vinyl, this is the track that it would be backed with.  Fortunately, it doesn’t matter either way, because we have it here for you to listen to right now.

enjoy (more…)

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Back in March, we posted a review about the Spike Jonze-created short film, “I’m Here“.  The project, which is provided for free of charge on it’s own specially designed website, focuses on the love connection between a pair of robots, inhabiting some alternate version of Los Angeles.  Of course, there are underlying elements in the film which are much deeper than that.  The complexities of love, self-worth, social hierarchies, risk, trust, and even life itself are all explored throughout its half hour running time.

After reviewing the film we got a few comments, all relating to the soundtrack which accompanied the piece.  For those who haven’t read that last article about the project, the following excerpt should bring you a little more up to speed on the subject. (more…)

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Now that you’ve read our writer Knuckle Supper‘s review of Scott Pilgrim VS the World, you should know a little more about the project.  If nothing else, you should now know that it began as a graphic novel and have a rough idea about the manner in which it was adapted into a full-on motion picture.   It can be a big leap from the pages of a hand drawn comic book to the big screen and, in building that bridge, a few branches had to be cut.  The folks over at ADULT SWIM have decided to make that transition just slightly smoother, by providing an additional 4-minute short titled, “Scott Pilgrim VS The Animation“.  Through it’s  format alone, the cartoon helps to segue from the 2-dimensional black and white pages of Bryan Lee O’Malley‘s now classic, illustrated work to it’s live-action cinematic counterpart, but that isn’t it’s only benefit.  The short also works as a prologue, filling in and setting up a piece of the storyline that never made it into Edgar Wright‘s final movie.  The mini-film focuses on a flashback sequence from VOL. 2 of the book series, which establishes how Scott and Kim Pine originally met and began playing music together.

The network aired their brief animated contribution last night, in preparation of the the film’s release today, but we have it posted here for everyone that may have blinked and missed it.  It was produced by Jason DeMarco, and features voice work by actors Michael Cera, Alison Pill, Mae Whitman, and Jason Schwartzman.

Enjoy (more…)

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