New Music Round Up (El Michels Affair, Graveyard, Mulatu Astatke and the Heliocentrics)

Suppose most folks have heard the new Mastodon and Manchester Orchestra or at the very least the single from It’s Blitz! That said, I figured I’d drop some knowledge on some fantabulous jams from around the globe.

First up
El Michels Affair – 37th Chamber. link
Yes, as the name suggests, this is directly related to Wu’s 36 Chambers however, what we’ve got here is an uber talented group of players paying direct homage instrumentally to that classic Wu epic. The concept is simple, get a bunch of great musicians together and remake 36 Chambers with live instruments. Standouts like, “Can It All Be So Simple” is transformed into a slow brooding jam replete with a clave backbeat and some seriously juicy brass work. “Cherchez La Ghost” blasts off into a strange land of analog synth and wah guitar. These geniuses take what RZA and the Clan cobbled together from old casios and ‘under the carpet’ R&B samples and made a masterpiece hip hop record. Just wait til you hear the childrens choir on that ODB classic “Shimmy Shimmy Ya,” children chanting ‘Wu Tang’!

El Michels Affair pays respect then pays it forward tenfold with an entirely new and refreshed ‘remix’ in 37th Chamber. RIYL Curtis Mayfield, Wu Tang, Blacksploitation Soundtracks, Kung Fu

Graveyard – Graveyard. link
These Nordic knights of tundra metal take the formula of Captain Beyond/Blue Cheer/Black Sabbath and run with it. Yes it is derivative. Yes they mangle the english language. Yes there are a few note by note riffs from Jimi Hendrix and Tony Iommi. All that said, Graveyard is a classic album NOW.

RIYL – Sabbath, Captain Beyond, Guitars, Smoking Pot

Mulatu Astatke and the Heliocentrics – Inspiration Information 3 link
I still haven’t really been able to get into that Flying Lotus (los angeles) record, not like it was touted as the next Introducing by DJ Shadow. I’ll call bullshit on that, only because I’m sentimentally attached to Introducing being that it was THE soundtrack of my freshman year in college (I’ve conveniently omitted Earth Crisis from all past playlists). So, this trip hop or whatever the kids are calling it these days has become more eccentric. Dangermouse upped the ante with the Grey Album. Girl Talk is the most Mashable and LCD Soundsystem is IDM for the art school/fixed gear/american apparel clique. Love them all I do, but for those of you with a bit more of a sensitive palate, you may find a lot of herbs and spices in the Heliocentrics.

This record represents the possibility of what would occur if the dudes from Don Cab were into Funkadelic and afro-funk like Fela Kuti instead of punk rock. It is a cross breeding of all the most prominent parts from Buena Vista Social Club, Ghanaian Funk, Dr. Who theme song, and surf rock. If Henry Mancini took acid he’d make music like this-wait, maybe he did take acid. Okay then this could be the off spring of Henry Mancini and that smelly frenchman Serge Gainsbourg.

That is a fairly accurate account of my favorite three new records. Check em out. They are delicious!

Big Science drops debut EP, Coast of Nowhere for free online!

I know I haven’t really posted much in the past few months. Quick update; I’m applying to grad school and have been really busy getting all my requirements ready for the program (MFA). 

Without further adieu, my dear friends Jasons (cubed) have unleashed the Big Science EP on the world and it is magnificent. No review. No bullshit. You’ll either love it or you won’t but here is the link to download it for free.

http://www.box.net/shared/2s1u7j4inj

Everyone Has an Asshole

This is a work of satire. It is based in part on a conversation overheard while waiting in a terminal for a connecting flight during a layover. It was one of those lovely one-sided conversations spoken into a phone, right next to me so it was like he was talking to me but I couldn’t respond, I added what I thought the other person might be saying but seriously some of the things he said I couldn’t have made up. 

Hey you old sonofabitch. How they hangin’? Good, waiting to fly home. Scoping out some airport tail. You know it bro.

Opinions are like assholes and everyone’s got one right?

You mentioned last time I saw you that you didn’t really like McCain but would proly vote for him anyway and were worried about voting for Obama because you fear he’ll raise taxes. The promise of another Republican administration could mean you’ll salvage some bit of your retirement. I assume that is merely one small piece of your decision making pie. After all, you don’t live hand to mouth anymore but you definitely don’t want to work till you drop dead either. That little condo by the shore seems like a good place to spend those golden years right?

Did you know the cumulative debt of the United States in the past 5 completed fiscal years was approximately $2.78 trillion, or about 29.5% of the total national debt of ~$9.5 trillion? I know! Crazy right? I just wikipedia’d that on my crackberry and there it was.

That doesn’t include the proposed 700 billion dollar bailout plan of our failing banking system. If your only beef with Obama is the fear that he will raise taxes, you most likely breath with your mouth open. I’m just fuckin’ with ya.

I know most dems are all about watching Unicorns piss rainbows. Stroking the hope cock and waiting to get faced with a load of utopia right? Ha. I’m sure you’ve done the research necessary to make a sound choice in November, just like you did last time.

I think you had told me in 2000 that Bush would make a good president because you thought he was funny and would be a fun guy to have a beer with and I concurred vehemently after we shot gunned those beers at the Broncos season opener. Then in 2004 you held steadfast and voted for him again. I didn’t even bother but I was so present for that one mentally bro.

I mean, who wants a dude that looks like Frankenstein running the country right? If it ain’t broke, well you know the rest.

Of course we had a laugh about the Gitmo thing, just ignore the Geneva Convention and get the intel so they can keep us safe right. I practically filled my mouth with miller lite and bits of ball park frank laughing about Haliburton’s no bid contracts and the fact Cheney still draws a paycheck from them. Alberto Gonzalez and Valerie Plame, shit I bust my gut just thinking about it. Bet Scooter’s got a nice little place and two dozen acre’s somewhere down in the keys. And Abu Ghraib, dang ol’ boy couldn’t even mumble that name right, he’s like a cute retarded cowboy.

You already know all this of course. Its practically etched into the back of your eyes and whenever you’re having a bad day, you can just recall those “WMD’s” and have yourself a giggle. I know I don’t need to mention “Mission Accomplished” or when the senate passed amnesty for the telecoms while simultaneously expanding the domestic spying act. Even Obama voted for that because if he didn’t he knew everyone wouldn’t only think he was a Patriotism averse muslim but he didn’t care that the bill would further stomp on our constitution in the name of freedom. Those dems probably think he’s doing that to keep face and fall in line so he doesn’t give any folks on the fence call to toss their lot in with McCain, knowing when he gets in office he’ll whip out his wand and he and Harry Potter will magic the world back into shape.

Just cause our parents and us have fucked up things for our children and our childrens children doesn’t mean we should suffer for it. I know that’s kind of a fucked up thing to say but, hey, it’s social darwinism right? That’s what we have kids for – to clean up our messes and make sure each successive generation doubles the mistakes of the previous? Then when we are old and represent the majority of the voting public, like our parents and grandparents now do, we can run this fucker straight into the ground without recourse or remorse.

So getting back to this tax thing, that doesn’t bother me so much as the fact that he’s black.

Shit, they just canceled my flight. I’m gonna have some scotch and try and bang this waitress…

My DJ Fantasy: Sexy Flash App

Ralph Lagnado, Senior Planner of International Digital Media at Woo Agency posted his company’s latest project for client Samsung on the Music Industry Forum on Linkeding.com. Its called My DJ Fantasy and it involves a limo, drinking, and VIP treatment, for the user. This super slick marketing campaign is to help launch Samungs new Q1, which is a phone/pda/gps/portable MP3 dj mixing handheld device. It’s large for a handheld, not something you can easily slip into your tight hipster jeans or Louis Vuitton clutch. However you could use it to chop lettuce for burritos after a night at the club mixing for the inevitable after party crowd. Anyway, this is the slickest, quickest flash app (the DJ mixing part if you follow it to the end) I’ve ever seen. The whole ‘choose your own adventure’ is a nice touch but cheesy.

The product itself is very intriguing, being a musician it has some fascinating possibilities, though I’m not sure it’d be any better than an iBook with Logic and Abelton Live. It’s a great example of engagement and for those in the demographic that this touches they’ll probably spend some serious time with it and possibly have repeat visits. Also, Cut Chemist is the celebrity DJ involved, so any fans of Jurassic Five and quality hip-hop will be stoked.

Really liked it with a few exceptions; there should be an option to skip the ‘choose your own adventure’ and go straight to mixing and it would be helpful to see a video of the product demoed in real time, if it was there I missed it because I’d already spent too much time playing around. I wasn’t clear what the product was right off the bat but it was really fun. Best product integrated flash app i’ve ever seen. Kudos to their development team. Now if they could integrate the fantasy into a sharable, social platform, they’d really get some life out of it.

This was a huge leap for a large company like Motorola to launch their product and I’m happy to see they put this kind of trust in web technology. Maybe iteration 2 will actually let users of the Q1 enter a mixing contest that Cut Chemist oversees and the Fantasy becomes reality.  Yo, throw me a new Sliver if you use that idea Motorola, I’ve dropped mine too many times! 

www.mydjfantasy.com

Stooges Gear Stolen In Canada

This is a post from Watts Hoot Page.

if anyone has information, ANY INFORMATION!
please, please, PLEASE as soon as possible contact
Eric Fischer at:
nycentral13@gmail.com
cell phone: +1 646 932 1907

IGGY AND THE STOOGES
EQUIPMENT STOLEN ON AUGUST 4, 2008
OUTSIDE THE EMBASSY SUITES HOTEL
208 SAINT ANTOINE OUEST,
MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA

all equipment was in a rented penske 15 foot yellow truck
with u.s. (michigan) license plate number AC46493
parked immediately outside the hotel, the theft had
to have happened in the morning, between 6:30 and
7:30 am – truck and all gear stolen

pictures of some of the stolen stuff

Item      Country of Origin   Serial Number

Red roadcase containing:
      Red Gibson 1963 EB-3 bass (this is mike watt’s bass!)   USA   No serial number

Black roadcase containing:r
      Reverend Flying V guitar – Volcano black   USA   #08001

Black roadcase containing:
      Reverend Orange guitar   USA   03416 ZSL7

Black fibre case containg:
      Gibson red SG short scale bass   USA   No serial number

Black roadcase containing:
      Marshall Vintage/Modern Amplifier   UK   M-2007-07-0926-2 RoHS

Black roadcase containing:
      Marshall Vintage/Modern Amplifier   UK   M-2007-07-0927-2 RoHS

4x Marshall 4×12 Cabinets (with Tuki cover)      UK   #1 Slant: M-2007-05-0149-0

4x Marshall 4×12 Cabinets (with Tuki cover)      UK   #2 Straight: M-2006-49-0380-0

4x Marshall 4×12 Cabinets (with Tuki cover)      UK   #3 Slant: M-2007-05-0150-0

4x Marshall 4×12 Cabinets (with Tuki cover)      UK   #4 Straight: M-2006-49-0381-0

Orange Calzone road case containing:         
      Guitar pedal board and pedals   USA/Japan   No serial number
      Assorted leads    USA/UK   No serial number
      2x mic stands   Germany   No serial number
      Assorted strings and spares   USA   No serial number
   plus:
      2x Boss TU2 Chromatic Tuner
      Boss CH1 Super Chorus
      Fulltone OCD Overdrive
      Crybaby Wah
      Peterson Strobo-Stomp Tuner Pedal
      Whirlwind A/B Boxes
      Whirlwind Cable Tester
      and many many istrument cables
      various tools ( screwdrivers, soldering iron, pliers, etc… )
      tambourine and maracas

Cardboard box containing:         
      Assorted replacement drum heads   USA   No serial number

Gretsch Silver Sparkle Catalina drum kit      USA   No serial number
      26″ Kick Drum      No serial number
      13″ Rack Tom      No serial number
      18″ Floor Tom      No serial number
      4x Cymbal Stands      No serial number
      1x Snare Stand      No serial number
      1x Hi Hat Stand      No serial number
      1x Drum Throne      No serial number

Eden D810 Bass cabinet      USA   D810RP4 0703E5001

Eden D810 Bass cabinet      USA   D810RP4 0703E5002

Cardboard box containg:         
      Eden VT300 Bass amplifier   USA   0601E5115

Cardboard box containg:         
      Eden VT300 Bass amplifier   USA   0507E5033

Floor Fan      CHINA   No serial number

Floor Fan      CHINA   No serial number

Green clamshell suitcase containing:         
      Yamaha snare drum   JAPAN   No serial number
      Yahama kick pedal   JAPAN   No serial number
      Zildjian Mega Bell cymbal   USA   No serial number
      Zildjian 15″ Hi-Hats   USA   No serial number
      3x Zildjian 18″ 19″ 20″ crash medium cymbals   USA   No serial number

Brown Epiphone guitar case:         
      Black Epiphone EB3 short scale bass   KOREA   F300503

1 x Wheeled Black Pelican case (50cm x 28cm x 20cm) containing :
A selection of microphones and microphone accessories, most of which are in separately labeled black pouches. All of the microphones are of Shure manufacture, also a BSS DI box. Inside the Pelican case there is also a Ferrari pencil case containing an iPod, iPod accessories, various small cables and adaptors, a Leatherman Charge, a Stooges AAA tour laminate, some pain killers, some sharpies, some electrical tape, some business cards (Mr Rik Hart). Within the case there is also a big pair of Sony headphones (model MDR7506) with a long curly cable and three very long XLR to XLR mic cables. Here’s a more specific list of the microphones :
2 x SM91
5 x SM98
2 x B98
2 x SM81
2 x KSM32
1 x KSM27
2 x B52
3 x SM57
8 x SM58
1 x BSS AR-133 DI Box
(all manufactured by shure)

http://www.hootpage.com/stoogesstolenstuff/stoogesstolenstuff.html

mike watt’s hoot page

US Gov Sends Tigers to Baghdad Zoo!

Stupidity is Contagious

That is a correct assessment of the Boosh Administration and that cavalier attitude toward common sense has run rampant in the past 8 years. Example: US NAVY testing midrange frequency sonar, the sound is like the squealing feedback of a PA system at a concert, what musicians call ‘bad feedback,’ it is sort of like having your brains melted through your ears–it is hell for ocean dwelling mammals. Testing was halted for some time and last I heard it was resumed. Total disregard for other living creatures. A concept not difficult to understand when we’ve already had one illegal invasion of a country on false pretense and have been pushing toward another illegal invasion of Iran for the past 4 years. (Iran before Boosh is gone, anyone taking bets? Odds are we’ll try for Tehran by X-mas, it’ll be so…Crusader-y and the perfect cap to 8 years of utter disappointment.)

Here is another example of the inner workings of the idiocracy! They make a good argument against it in regards to the animals but I’m semi-appalled at the arrogance of this ‘goodwill’ that stinks of PR ops for the white house. The uniformed will pat themselves on the backs and say ‘Yay for us!’ But the Iraqi shopkeeper who hasn’t been able to get out of the red since the invasion will continue to wring his hands in frustration, ‘what the fuck do we need tigers for?’

(Note: I was informed of this through PETA2’s newsletter)

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has issued a permit for Conservators’ Center, Inc.—a roadside zoo in Mebane, North Carolina—to send two tigers to the Baghdad Zoo in Iraq.

When the war in Iraq began, the media reported that hundreds of animals at the Baghdad Zoo were killed, stolen, eaten, stuffed, sold, or let loose by looters, or they escaped when mortar blasts damaged their cages. As newspapers and television continue to remind us, the military conflict in Iraq is far from over and incidents of extreme violence are still commonplace. Additionally, there is no evidence that Iraq has acceptable standards for captive-animal care.

The proposal to send the tigers to the Baghdad Zoo is being portrayed as a gesture of goodwill toward the citizens of Iraq, but it is cruel and irresponsible to put tigers in harm’s way in a country where most of the people don’t even have access to basic necessities.

What You Can Do
Use the form below to ask the USFWS to reevaluate its decision regarding PRT-181813 and deny the Conservators’ Center permit application. Remind the USFWS that it has already been tragically demonstrated that the animals at the Baghdad Zoo are not protected from the country’s military conflict. Tell officials that the export of tigers to Iraq would violate the spirit of CITES, an international wildlife trade agreement. 

LINK

Laurie Anderson Interview in Smithsonian Mag!

Great Article in new Smithsonian mag with Laurie Anderson. Below is an excerpt, but the real gold is her perspective on her ‘recording career.’ Classic!

 

Laurie Anderson

The celebrated performance artist discusses Andy Warhol, NASA and her work at McDonald’s

What’s the message in your work?
If I had a message, I would write it down and e-mail it to everybody. I would save a lot of paint that way. My work is more about trying to create images through words and pictures. I want to evoke a reaction more than explain anything clearly. I don’t like things to be confused, but I like them to be multifaceted.

Read the rest.

Rep Susan Davis Responds to Net Neutrality

I got this response from the action alert I submitted recently regarding the protection of Net Neutrality. It is of course a form letter, here it is in its entirety:

 

Dear Mr. Roeschlein,

 

Thank you for contacting me to share your support for H.R. 5353, the Internet Freedom Preservation Act.  I appreciate hearing from you and welcome the opportunity to respond.

 

H.R. 5353 would direct the Federal Communications Commission to conduct public broadband summits to assess competition, consumer protection, and consumer choice issues related to broadband Internet access services.

 

I would like to see the Internet remain an open medium encouraging free debate, free speech and free commerce online.  Network neutrality is a key issue as the current 110th Congress takes up telecommunications reform, and you can count on me to continue asking tough questions and advocating for fairness for all parties involved.  The future of the Internet is at stake and it is important that Congress makes sound decisions to encourage the continued growth of this amazing medium.  I look forward to monitoring H.R. 5353 as it moves through the legislative process. 

 

Once again, thank you for contacting me.  As your representative, I both need and value your perspective.  Please sign up for my E-Newsletter on my website, www.house.gov/susandavis, if you would like to receive monthly updates about what is happening in Congress.

 

With warm regards,

SUSAN A. DAVIS
Member of Congress
*****************************************************

DISCLAIMER:  I cannot guarantee the integrity of the text of this message unless it was sent to you directly from my
Congressional e-mail account: Susan.Davis@mail.house.gov.  Please note that this account is unattended.  If you would
like to send me a message, please do so through my website, http://www.house.gov/susandavis.

*****************************************************

I’m happy that Susan Davis feels this way. Please take a few seconds to send a letter to your representative and help protect the present and future of these magical internets. Net Neutrality ensures the protection of our right as humans and consumers to choose something besides Coke or Pepsi. Sure there are a lot of shit sodas out there and lots of terrible web sites but wouldn’t you like to continue making that determination on your own?

Net Neutrality In Question Again

Ack ack!

Like the MPAA and the FCC aren’t bad enough with all their inconsistencies and Neo-McCarthyism, we’ve got Big TeleCom to worry about taking our little digital wild west and making it a strip mall of bad selection and homogeny [like everything else]. See the little letter below. Someone finally took this more seriously and put together an action alert/auto responder that sends to your representative. Protect the net! 

Dear Friend, Big phone and cable companies are trying to get rid of Network Neutrality, the fundamental principle that prevents them from discriminating against your favorite Web sites and services. Unless we speak out to our members of Congress they could move to allow large telephone and cable companies to control what you do, where you go and what you watch online. To learn more, visit www.savetheinternet.com or the URL below to check out what’s at stake and send a loud message directly to the Congress: https://secure2.convio.net/free/site/Advocacy?id=162

Happy Birthday to Nuclear Fire Power!

The lovely folks at wired.com have posted some beautiful shots of mans greatest invention. J. Robert Oppenheimer’s legacy and his contributions to physics are paramount, engulfed in the icon of the mushroom cloud. Terrible beauty and a powerful force of destruction and energy.  

The Future is Assured.

OPERATION IVY

  “The island of Elugelab is missing!” President Truman heard this short report from Gordon Dean, chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, following the “Mike shot,” conducted as part of Operation Ivy. Mike, which delivered 10.4 megatons, was the first full-fledged hydrogen bomb to be detonated. It vaporized the small islet of Elugelab in the Eniwetok Atoll.