The Dovers // What Am I Going To Do
I heard The Dovers on one of Bradford Cox’s micromixes that he posts on his blog. He has really good taste in music. The Animal Collective put together some mixes for him too and it was also posted on there. Geologist and Panda Bear’s are my favorite. I think they were taken down already though.
brent.muxtape.com
Muxtape is pretty much the exact idea I had right before I started this mp3 blog a few years ago. It’s really exactly what I wanted to do to begin with.
I’ll try and update it again soon.
In regards to the last post - sxsw shorthand recap:
-upset the rhythm showcase(John Maus, others I can’t remember) - I was watching the show standing next to El Guincho. He seemed really happy to be there. I took some video.
-Mess With Texas showcase (Paul F. Thompkins, Brian Posehn, Eugene Mirman, Hard n Phirm, Janeane Garofalo, Human Giant, Aziz Ansari, Reggie Watts, Todd Barry) - I saw pretty much this entire comedy showcase, didn’t see David Cross, Jon Glaser, or Jon Benjamin :/ I’ve uploaded some videos on my vimeo of Aziz Ansari, Eugene Miraman, and Brian Posehn. There’s more footage but I thought most people wouldn’t be interested to see it.
-Cool Kids
-Atlas Sound(last set ever), White Rainbow, Kimya Dawson
-8bitpeoples showcase (Anamanaguchi, Aonami) - Totally legit w/ real nintendo’s and gameboys + gameboy camera projections
That’s pretty much it - all that I can remember.
The Animal Collective - Water Curses EP is very good.
It comes out May 5th on Domino so check it out.
Here is one song from it that you probably already have if you’re a fan or if you don’t it’s going to be your favorite song.
Andrew Lim is an American guy living in Australia who makes dance music I think, but what’s most interested me in him has been this 8-bit version of a Super Mario Galaxy song that he composed. Here it is in youtube:
I guess you would get more out of it if you’ve play Super Mario Galaxy but I think it’s pretty nice to listen to even you haven’t, maybe, probably. He’s announced (in youtube video descriptions) plans for more SMG chiptunes so if you want to keep updated I guess the best way to do that would be to subscribe to his youtube channel.
He also did this Donkey Kong Country 2 song that I hadn’t previously heard but I think his arrangement is pretty much one of the most beautiful things ever.
Hi, people of the internet. Here are some choice picks of the week. Listen with gusto.
Ghost // Hazy Paradise
Japanese psyche rock band, Ghost, does a take on Earth & Fire’s “Hazy Paradise” with more of a down tempo and melancholic sound. If you like Boris + Kurihara “Rainbow” you should probably check it out. From their 2004 album Hypnotic Underworld. [Drag City]
Swedish revivalist sounds. Nods to the Joy Division and New Order bands. I’m now filled with fake nostalgia because I never grew up with those bands truly. I never made mixtapes on cassettes and gave them to girls like in the movies. Now all I do is hear about stuff on internet blogs and forums. I’m trying to imagine in 20 years when we start remembering bands now that we would have grown up with. It would be like “oh yeah, I remember reading MusicGuy28’s blog and hearing The Honeydrips for the first time.” Not really as cool.
This list was revised a few times and I took some recommendations from other blogs and many of those albums ended up being really good and were added to my top 10. I left out lots of things but it’s all old news already so I’ll leave it at that. Also I made a playlist for you. okayyyyy, yeah.
*****Fav. Albums of 07*****
1. Animal Collective - Strawberry Jam & Panda Bear - Person Pitch
2. A Place To Bury Strangers - A Place To Bury Strangers
3. Jens Lekman - Night Falls Over Kortedala
4. The Go - Howl on the Haunted Beat You Ride
5. Shugo Tokumaru - Exit
6. Om - Pilgramage
7. King Khan and the Shrines - What Is?!
8. Raccoo-oo-oon - Behold Secret Kingdom
9. No Age - Weirdo Rippers
10. Blonde Redhead - 23
Others (in no order):
- Boris with Michio Kurihara - Rainbow
- A Sunny Day in Glasgow - Scribble Mural Comic Journal
- John Maus - Love Is Real
- The Ohsees - Sucks Blood
- Deerhoof - Friend Opportunity
- Frog Eyes - Tears of the Valedictorian
- Melt Banana - Bambi’s Dilemma
- The Horrors - Strange House
- Caribou - Andorra
- Radiohead - In Rainbows
- World’s End Girlfriend - Hurtbreak Wonderland
*****Favorite 2007 track playlist***** 1. Chrysta Bell, David Lynch - Polish Poem (Inland Empire Soundtrack) 2. The Go - Caroline 3. Jens Lekman - I’m Leaving You Because I Don’t Love You 4. King Khan & the Shrines - 69 Faces of Love 5. M83 - Coloring The Void 6. John Maus - Green Bouzard 7. Animal Collective - #1 8. The Ohsees - It Killed Mom 9. The Go! Team - Flashlight Fight 10. Chromatics - In the City 11. A Sunny Day In Glasgow - 5:15 Train 12. Glass Candy - Rolling Down The Hills 13. Love of Life Orchestra, Peter Gordon - Don’t Don’t (Fabriclive .36)
*****Favorite Live Clips Taken*****
To recount many great memories of last year here are my favorite video clips I’ve taken from selected shows. Sorry if I crash your browser, this post is going to be flash heavy.
I am also adding in my favorite movies from 2007 because I didn’t know where else to put them.
*****Favorite Movies 2007*****
1. There Will Be Blood
2. No Country For Old Men
3. The Savages
4. Superbad
5. Knocked Up
6. Ratatouille
7. The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters
8. Eastern Promises
9. Juno
10. Sunshine
Others:
- The Darjeeling Limited
- Smiley Face
- Hot Rod
- Margot at the Wedding
Didn’t really come out in 2007 but great:
- Paprika
- Inland Empire
- The Host
- Paris, Je T’aime
Still want to see:
- Persopolis
- I’m Not There
- Hannah Takes The Stairs
First, don’t forget to take a look at Brent’s December Mix 2007 below this post…
So this week, it seems only fitting to take a look back at this year and some of the more notable and favorite albums that have made 2007 what it is.
First of all I want to outline some of the guidelines for my selections: my personal favorites, cultural impact, popularity, panache, novel approach, production/recording quality, avant-garde, Bohemian, contemporary and so on…
This year’s top five was actually a pretty difficult thing. But in the end though there may have been some better albums, these guys had great albums and a great overall year to match it… not withstanding some unexpected exposure and serious cultural impact.
There was just too much good music this year to leave it any shorter.
The sad part of it all is that I know I’m leaving things out that I’ll become privy to half way through next year too.
Regardless these are my favorite albums of the year thus far and placing these in any real order, one over the other… can’t really be done. SO keep in mind there’s a little bit of wiggle room here… right?
So, enjoy and please feel fee to argue with me.
Artists/Labels to Watch in 2008:
10. A-Trak
9. Yelle
8. Boys Noize
7. Black Kids
6. Kitsuné Maison
6. Ed Banger
5. Italians Do It Better
4. Vampire Weekend
3. Blaqstarr
2. Uffie
1. Kid Sister
Honorable Mention:
10. Battles - Mirrored
9. Handsome Furs - Plague Park
8. Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha
7. !!! -Myth Takes
6. Deerhoof - Friend Opportunity
5. Spoon - GaGaGaGaGa
4. Burial - Untrue
3. Budos Band - Budos Band II
2. Sunset Rubdown - Random Spirit Lover
1. Glass Candy - Beat Box
Top 27 of 2007:
27. Kevin Dew - Spirit If…
26. Besnard Lakes - Are the Darkhorse
25. Yacht - I Believe In You, Your Magic Is Real
24. Fabriclive .36 - James Murphy
23. Madlib - Yesterdays Universe/ Beat Konducta In India
22. Chromeo - Fancy Footwork
21. Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna…
20. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
19. Feist - The Reminder
18. Menomena - Friend & Foe
17. Italians Do It Better - After Dark comp
16. Beirut - The Flying Cub Cup
15. Radiohead - In Rainbows
14. Dan Deacon - Spider Man of the Rings
13. Panda Bear - Person Pitch
12. Matthew Dear - Asa Breed
11. White Williams - Smoke
10. Bonde do Role - With Lazers
9. Deerhunter - Cryptograms
8. M.I.A. - Kala
7. Simian Mobile Disco - Attack Decay Sustain Release
6. Frabriclive .33 Spank Rock/ Fabricdead 33.3 Devlin & Darko mix
5. Black Moth Super Rainbow - Dandelion Gum
The Afternoon Turns Pink
This was a very unexpected personal favorite of mine this year. I hear so many different qualities in these songs from the drunken, psychedelic influences thrust upon the vocals and distorted melodies, the hip-hop sensibilities in the syncopated yet some times painfilly simple beats, to the idealism and folklore of the lyrics. There is something about the magic of this band that draws me back to the deceivingly simplistic songs on this album. Much of it lies in the enigmatic, abstraction of the lyrics but i also believe much if is accredited to the shameless use of a mostly pixelated and electronic palate to paint such symbolically fluid songs.
4. LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver
All My Friends
- Sound of Silver, though a little short, still managed to provide some of this years strongest and more sincere tracks. …and though Sound of Silver has struggled at times to find it’s place on the radio or on the dance floor; what it has done is proven James Murphy’s lasting credibility in the music world. Sound of Silver as helped to cement the deadly expansion of DFA and it’s bands but it will also ensure that eyes will remain on one of the progenitors of this dance/electronic/rock hybrid subculture for years to come.
3. Animal Collective - Strawberry Jam
Cuckoo Cuckoo
- Strawberry Jam was surrounded with heated anticipation… while at the same time, alternate, live versions of nearly all the songs were available months before the album was ever released. What made the album such a success is the degree of plasticity that Animal Collective was able to exert upon each of the songs upon formally recording them. Strawberry Jam was more than surprise for fans hearing the studio versions for the first time but it was a refreshing evolution for a band already known for its experimentalism.
2. Caribou - Andorra
Desiree
Andorra though grossly under appreciated by the music community as a whole is one of the most beautifully and delicately constructed albums of the year. What’s more stunning is that the album runs from one end of the spectrum to the other in a truly furtive yet memorable manner. This album elicits pure bliss when listened to on headphones. Andorra effectively constructs itself into a piece of art work with a nearly seamless yet polarized, idiosyncratic collection of songs.
1. Justice - † Valentine
“Cross” has become one of dance’s most treasured catalysts on the dance floor. Justice’s album has played an integral part in the explosion of a particular hybrid in the dance subculture this year. Hell, they probably had a hand in what Daft Punk is considering one of their most popular years, and they didn’t even release an album. Though maybe not the most innovate album of the year (dance music never really is) it has had such a far and wide reaching impact that it can’t be ignored as one of this years most influential and popular albums, So much of this song is the bread and butter of any Dj set right now it’s hard to imagine what would have filled the shoes of the genre bender that D.A.N.C.E was able to provide.
vivian girls
Vivian Girls // Never See Me Again (Vivian Girls LP, 2008)
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