Mexican Shoe Thief and Mexican Camel Tow

Here’s a two fer free download of Cabron’s magnum opus’ Mexican Camel Tow and Mexican Shoe Thief.

Mexican Camel Tow: http://www.sendspace.com/file/0qru6e
Mexican Shoe Thief: http://www.sendspace.com/file/ixlk5q

Minor Threat: Jeff Nelson Reflects on his work with Seminal Punk Outfit and Record Label

What began as fun, became a hallmark and inspiration to many of today’s current bands. Dischord Records is a model to new Indie labels starting up.

The reluctance from the major labels to take chances on smaller, radio-hostile bands during the arena rock era eventually led to the do-it-yourself ethics of the early eighties punk bands. Most importantly this helped lead to one of the most enduring and prime examples of an “Independent” and DIY, label, called Dischord Records, co-founded by Ian McKay and Jeff Nelson of the seminal punk rock band Minor Threat, based out of Washington D.C. The first record put out by Dischord was a seven-inch by Jeff and Ian’s first band, The Teen Idles and the second came from Idles roadie and S.O.A. front man, Henry Rollins.

Recently Jeff spoke to themusicedge.com about the early days of Dischord and some of the things that have since changed from that era. According to Jeff, “Ian (McKay) and I met in eleventh grade in public school in German class. We were both interested in skateboarding and rock, and once punk came along we both really got interested in that. We decided that we had to be in a band together so we started a band with some other friends called The Slinkies. Then when the singer went to college we replaced him and then became The Teen Idles, Ian was on bass at the time and not singing at that point. We learned a lot about being in a band and we got much better as musicians and Ian got a lot better as a lyricist and by the time that band broke up we had six hundred dollars saved up and we were gonna’ split it up and get 150 bucks each or we thought much more fun would be to put out a seven-inch record ourselves. We know that no one else was going to be interested in putting it out. Ian came up with the name Dischord as a name for a label, even though we didn’t think we were starting a record label per se, we just needed something to stick on the record. We pressed 1000 seven-inches, this is fall 1980 and by the time that record came out Ian and I were already in our third band, with Ian singing at this point. That band was Minor Threat which was only together two or three years but we got much bigger and we did start putting out other records, our friends records and just grew from there. We grew from putting out seven-inch records, jammed packed with songs, to putting out full-length vinyl records and it wasn’t until years later that CD’s came along. Minor Threat sales were the bread and butter of the label for years and still bring in good money to this day. My partner Ian’s band Fugazi is now the main bread and butter of the label. They’ve pretty much subsidized the cheap prices of the rest of the Dischord catalogue, some of the bands that have been popular over the years, but rarely do we sell enough records to make tons of money.”

Some of the most inspiring aspects of Dischord is the fact that it is run by musicians, and there are also many things put in place in order to keep all aspects of the label fair to the fans and to the bands. It was started out of a house Ian and Jeff were living in on the other side of the Potomac in Virginia they called the “Dischord House”, bands were recording, rehearsing and putting together vinyl packages and shipping materials to various record stores while maintaining full time jobs and finishing high school or starting college. Certain aspects like keeping costs of the records down, by stating an upfront price on all Dischord releases and a warning to anyone being fleeced by a big corporate chain for marking up a CD. Most CD’s are 12 dollars post paid and Jeff says that, “some kids will write and complain that some record store is charging thirteen but the problem isn’t the record store because they have to make some kind of overhead to run their store.”

He adds, “its funny because you’d get completely different answers if you are asking me or Ian (about pricing ethics). When we started out we were very much into the do it yourself ethics. I do not hate major labels because a lot of the music I grew up on came out on major labels. They were certainly not remotely interested in the kind of music we were doing or the bands we liked. We liked it that way. We liked it being underground, keeping things cheap, small record stores, doing it yourself, whether it was cutting and pasting flyers to advertise for your shows or cutting and pasting the art work for the cover art on the records. It was born of necessity, because we didn’t have any money. Selling the records for cheap was an important part of things and there were many records that came out with a “pay no more than” sticker on the sleeve, whether than in England or the States. We quickly came to realize that was hard to do and it really puts store owners in a bind and makes them look bad when you say, “pay no more than five dollars”, but by the time they get it from the distributors they are paying 4.50 and they aren’t getting anything. The world isn’t perfect so from my perspective we have softened that over the years. Ian would like to sell things cheaper than I want, and I would like to sell them for a bit more in order to give a bit more to the bands, because that ultimately is what pays the bills for the Dischord bands.”

Who knew what an amazing business model a bunch of eighteen year old kids in our nations capitol could start from scratch without any prior knowledge? Not only has Dischord been a role model for many independently owned record labels but the amazing bands that have grown with Dischord have inspired new musicians all over the world. So many bands have cited Minor Threat as an influence and so many bands in the Indie Rock scene cite Dischord as an influence and inspiration for the way they record, tour, rehearse, self-promote and play all ages shows in order to keep the music where it should be, right in front of the fan.

Since the break-up of MINOR THREAT, Jeff Nelson has played in Egg Hunt, 3, Senator Flux and High Back Chairs. Ian MacKaye has played in Egg Hunt, Embrace, Pailhead and still plays in Fugazi, while also producing Dischord bands like Q and Not U. Both Ian and Jeff still run the Dischord label. Jeff currently resides in Arlington Virginia where he not only manages to run Dischord from his home but another label he started on his own to showcase the music he is currently interested in called, Adult Swim Records.

Converge’s Ben Koller: A Well-Rounded Timekeeper

Converge came into existence at the behest of founding members Jacob Bannon (vox, lyrics) and guitarist Kurt Ballou in 1991. Subsequent lineup changes and several albums (met with critical appraise) later, Converge has been one of the most interesting and influential bands in hard core metal today. Their highly acclaimed album, When Forever Comes Crashing, produced by Steve Austin (Today is the Day), found Converge getting into their respective creative groove, solidifying a sound that is both unique and brutal and always evolving.

Though Converge has been around for the past 10 years, it wasn’t until the release of their highly lauded and groundbreaking concept album, Jane Doe, that mainstream metal pundits started taking notice. At which time gave them more footing in not only the hardcore metal scene but also garnered much respect among metal enthusiasts and art rockers alike. The intelligence in lyrics and songwriting make Converge a compelling and formidable band.

Drummer Ben Koller took some time between his busy schedule working a full-time job and recording for the new Converge album to talk to themusicedge.com

How old were you when you started playing music?
I got a drum set for Christmas when I was 13. I started playing in bands a couple years later.

Did you play music in school? Were you involved in any after-school band programs?
Hell ya! Let’s see if I can name them all off. Jazz band, elite jazz band, concert band, pep band and a Blues Brothers cover band. I also took guitar class.

What is your first recollection of music? What inspired you to become interested in playing the drums?
I grew up listening to stuff like Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie. The song that made me want to be in a band was “I’m Not a Loser” by the Descendents.

What are some of your early influences as a drummer? Who are some of your most inspirational drummers?
Drummers in local bands on Cape Cod were a huge inspiration when I was in high school. Some drummers that I dig are Bill Stevenson (Black Flag, Descendents), Danny Carey (Tool), Dave Lombardo, Bonzo, etc. There’s so many, it would be impossible to try and list them all.

What benefits, if any, did you attain from playing music in school?
I learned how to read music and sight-read, I learned from other drummers, built some amazing friendships, built up my chops, learned to play with other musicians (not just guitarists but brass, woodwinds, etc.), learned dynamics (although I always played way too loud), and kept my sanity by having a break from the monotony of the rest of school.

Did you take lessons? What was the most important thing you learned from lessons?
I took lessons for a few years after I started playing. I did a lot of stuff that I probably never would have done on my own like jazz, salsa, Latin, etc. Also all the nerdy stuff like rudiments and reading music.

What is the songwriting process like for Converge?
Don’t ask. It’s ugly.

How often do you get to compose an entire song on drums, and is it easy or hard for the other members to write around drum parts?
Rarely are entire songs written from drum outlines, but many songs start with what we like to call “drum riffs.”

Do you favor speed over technique and style in your own playing, and which do you focus on the most?
It all depends on what the song calls for. In Converge, I try to compliment the rest of the band as best I can while still having a unique voice.

What kind of playing style do you gravitate toward? Converge has some very jazzy bits, and it’s in those bits that your playing really shines. Is this something the band strives for with each release, slowly moving away from the traditional hard core or metal style and into a more freeform improv style?
We write what we think we would want to listen to, and what we write is drawn from so many influences that it can be hard to categorize.

On “Homewrecker’s” intro there are some serious rolls—do you use triggers at all? How important is a double bass pedal, and how often do you use it?
I don’t use triggers with Converge. I never played double bass before coming into this band, and I probably wouldn’t have if the old songs didn’t call for it. When writing new songs I don’t consider using it all that much.

“The Broken Vow” has some interesting timing changes—was that something conceptualized when you were writing with the bass and guitar, or does it just sort of appear out of the creative process?
I’m so used to writing with odd timing and time signatures that I don’t really notice it that much. Ever since I started playing in bands I have grown accustomed to playing non-4/4 rhythms, so it just comes naturally.

What does your dream kit look like?
Led Zeppelin John Bonham custom kit. Clear amber vistalite shells. 26” kick, 14” rack, 16” & 18” floor toms.

Are there other projects you are currently pursuing? If so, what are they? If not, is there any you can see yourself being a part of in the future?
A couple months ago I assumed drumming duties for a Boston band called The Cignal. They’re amazing people, and they write amazing music. With any luck, we’ll be recording the band’s first full-length in the future. http://www.thecignal.com

Do you have any advice for new drummers? Any tips or insights that would benefit someone in the early stages of playing?
When I first started playing, I would practice playing along to The Ramones and The Sex Pistols songs with a boombox and headphones in my basement.
Start a band! Start a lot of bands! Playing in a band is one of the most valuable and rewarding experiences one can have. Start today!

For more on Converge, visit www.convergecult.com

Pedro the Lion: David Bazan

Pedro the Lion was a name of a character songwriter David Bazan lifted from his own rough copy of a children’s book he had set out to write prior to playing music. Pedro the Lion is a band that has chameleon like qualities, changing sonic colors from a simple folksy introductory EP called, Whole, in 1997 to a full fledged rock opus in their latest release, Achilles Heel. The band is made up by auteur David Bazan, whose thoughtful narrative and conceptualizations have made a cross over from typical Christian rock to a well-respected independent act that is proudly housed by Jade Tree Records. Both David and longtime collaborator, TW Walsh have made a clear line of trajectory from the early days of David alone in a room with an acoustic guitar to a full band, touring nationally and receiving critical acclaim from every respected musical outpost.

David comes from a musical background and his life has always had music in it in some shape or form. “My dad is a musician. He was a church music minister and he gave music lessons to supplement our income as we were growing up and he gave my sister and I lessons and my sister continued on with the piano but I stopped taking it in 6th grade. I played clarinet in fourth and fifth grade and started playing drums in school band in 7th grade. I continued to play for the next 6 years or so throughout junior high and high school. Except for a year we lived in Santa Cruz, CA and the junior high didn’t have a school music program. But I tried to play with people that I knew and stuff. By tenth grade I had started playing in rock bands and by the end of tenth grade I had started playing guitar. I guess for about a year I had been playing drums in bands and stuff. That was about 92’ and by 95’ I had started Pedro the Lion. I played in various bands for about three or four years but I was always writing my own songs.”

Some of the benefits of school music David took with him are, “you become familiar with it and you understand the discipline of it. Being in real life music situations on a regular basis really helps you and helps you to become a better musician. What I’ve found that I’m good at is a rhythm because I don’t have a really keen sense of melody. I have to know what I’m doing to do it. I’m not one of these guys that can just pick up a guitar and just make crazy music with it that I have no idea of what I’m doing. School music gave me a good foundation for rhythm that has helped me.”

PTL’s first few records, Winners Never Quit, Progress and 2002’s Control are conceptualized albums about morality, faith, redemption and life all told in a beautiful laconic voice with simple and cohesive instrumentation. However, Achilles Heel is a rock record and according to David, he purposely, “decided not to do that (concept album) after the release of Winners but happened upon it while doing Control. It was sort of just in the heat of the moment that it went that way. I’m just sort of learning about making art and how to do it and I’m slowly learning inspiration and discipline. Trying on hats I suppose and trying to figure out all the different ways it could go. You know because its songwriting based and not sound or band based. This one came about the way that it did mainly because there is a band in place and it wasn’t just me. The songs being the biggest part of it but the sound being important as well.

Like many singer songwriters, there is a fine line between the heavy-handed and the ambiguous, for Pedro The Lion each song and subsequent album can have different meanings to different people. As a songwriter, David knows what he is talking about; his thoughts and lyrics come from a personal place and he leaves it up to his fans to decide what they take from his songs, hopefully to make their own conclusions about what the songs may mean. “There’s value in ambiguity. It’s inevitable that some ambiguity will come from the songs. You can make it as clear as you can possibly make it and people are going to interpret it differently. I have an interpretation of my own and I know what I meant to say and it boils down to my interpretation verses what other people interpret as it is.”

Like most artists, David is in a constant state of evolution with the way he writes, “Usually, or at least in the past it starts with me sitting down with a guitar. You sit down and start playing and that’s kind of how it begins. Sometimes I’ll sit down with a notebook and do some free writing. Usually that way a few lyrics will come out intact or a few jumping off points. I used to come at from a more conceptual angel where I would have an idea about a song and I would try and write around that. I would sort of see the beginning and the end, or the bait and the switch, its not that formulaic but a song usually has an arc to it as far as how much information you give right off the bat. The idea or the character develops from there. I used to start with a concept and then write it. But I have enjoyed, on this album, not doing that as much just letting the song take whatever shape its going to. Usually your subconscious knows the formula and knows what works and what doesn’t. So it does what sounds good at that moment.”

Composing songs is no easy feat, composing good songs is even harder. Luckily, David isn’t short on intrinsic talent, his years spent learning music and his musical background and strong understanding of rhythm make it easier for him but it’s not a cakewalk either. On the length of time it takes David to write a song, he says, “I think the shortest is two or three hours. I don’t know exactly if the song took 11 hours or something. I don’t really keep track of how long the process takes.”

It is a bit of a process and everyone who takes part in making music has a their own personalized way of approaching it. For some, inspiration comes from news, personal life or an over active imagination, for David its not so much a ritual as it is an approach. Like landing an aircraft or putting a puzzle together, it takes a considerable amount of skill to compose a cohesive and engaging song, David manages to do this consistently through hard work and diligence. “Sometimes you just have to sit with a song for a long period of time for it to start to make sense. You can work on it for like an hour a day and then come back to it after a couple weeks and you have a better perspective of it.”

Being part of a functioning and working band takes practice. Since Control, with its full backing of musicians, the transition from single musician to a member of a band was easier for David. The reason of course was his time spent in school band where he learned key aspects like, “Listening is a big one. Being able to do what you’re doing and listen carefully to what everyone else is doing. In jazz band and drum line or any kind of ensemble situation at school or in drum lessons, they always emphasized the importance of having big ears. You’re trying to blend. That was a really big lesson. Trying to be good at what you are doing and also understanding that you are part of unit and knowing that unit is important is also a big part of playing with others.”

Being part of a band and touring can have it’s strain on anyone but for David being away on tour means being away from the one he loves, his wife. Some people have the luxury of taking their spouses with them, staying in nice hotels, site seeing during the day before a show, basically a working vacation. Unfortunately for an independent musician, a tour budget is minimal, yet David has managed to attain a semblance of personal balance. While on tour and away from his wife, David says, “There’s definitely a low level anxiety that comes from being apart. We end up talking a lot when I’m on the road. Since there’s no closeness to be had, no body language, we end up exchanging a lot more information verbally then we might and I enjoy that.”

Speaking of touring David and Pedro the Lion are gearing up for a spring tour in support of the release of Achilles Heel, is seeing is believing then you won’t want to pass this opportunity up!

Please visit www.pedrothelion.com for info on tour dates.

Denali: Maura Davis

Denali hails from Richmond, VA, and began in the spring of 2000 when singer/guitarist/pianist Maura Davis asked her brother Keeley Davis (Engine Down) to help her arrange some song ideas she had been toiling over. Keeley liked them and asked his bandmate in Engine Down, Jonathan Fuller to come on as the group’s drummer along with guitarist Cam Dinunzio. The four of them conceptualized and fleshed out Maura’s ideas into unique songs that balanced between electronic dirges and indie rock masterpieces.

Maura, a classically trained vocalist. was killing some time in-between returning to college when she first started writing the bulk of what would become Denali’s first self-titled release (Jade Tree Records). The success of the band and uniqueness of their sound snowballed into being more than just a side project for the two Engine Down members, and in September 2003 both Jonathan and Keeley left Denali to focus on Engine Down. Without breaking their stride, Maura and Cam got two very talented musicians to take their places—Stephen Howard (bassist/keyboardist) of Pinebender and Ryan Rapsys (drummer) of the band Euphone.

Maura got her start in music at an early age, learning piano and voice and eventually getting inspired by her high school voice teacher who, “changed my life and made me do things I wouldn’t have otherwise.”

Last fall, Denali was asked to go on a national tour with art metal rockers the Deftones. Maura says the experience was, “really cool but intimidating at first. You never know what to expect from the crowds so we’d just go out and play the best we could. They were respectful most of the time and only threw things at two shows (laughs).” She adds, “It was a great experience though and the guys from the Deftones were great.”

Maura uses the techniques she learned in voice training to transform her words into tenable, malleable sonic textures that only some in music have been able to accomplish (i.e., Beth Gibbons, Polly Jean Harvey and Björk). Her talents as a songwriter and poetess are succinctly accentuated by the band, and she says she’s even used a few classical voice ‘tricks’ in some of their songs.

Maura finds inspiration in many things but especially in movies. She is also greatly influenced by Björk, Portishead and Ella Fitzgerald. Taking aspects of other’s music and making it her own, Maura and Denali have managed to create something refreshing and new, and the fact that she is the front woman of an all-male band doesn’t bother her in the slightest. In fact, she prefers it.

Denali will be on tour with Cursive and Planes Mistaken for Stars on this year’s Plea For Peace Tour.

Jimmy Eat World: Future for Longevity

When Arizona-based Jimmy Eat World burst onto a burgeoning post-grunge scene in 1995, it was to the delight of the indie rock community. Essentially, a new aesthetic was being forged by the group and its contemporaries in bands like Sensefield, Christie Front Drive and Sunny Day Realestate—way before anyone dropped the ‘emo’ term and co-opted the moniker to describe music that had some real sensitivity behind it. The most interesting aspect of the new direction that bands like Jimmy Eat World took was slightly borrowed style from The Pixies, a group that had taken dynamics (quiet melodies into bursting loud choruses) and put an everlasting stamp on the rock world, going as far as Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain, who cited The Pixies for his own band’s inspiration.

Jimmy Eat World started with four neighborhood friends playing together during the soaring desert heat in the family rooms of various band members, and of course, up until recently, shared rehearsal spaces. Jimmy Eat World wasn’t so much discovered but rather referred by the members’ long-time Denver pals in the band Christie Front Drive. According to Jimmy Eat World bassist Rick Burch, Christie Front Drive played a show with Jimmy Eat World and then moved on to Los Angeles. There, the members of Christie Front Drive were approached by a representative of Capitol Records and asked if they wanted to sign a deal, but they turned him down. The rep was persistent and asked if they knew of any bands that would be interested, and the boys gave him the names and information of Jimmy Eat World. He went out and caught a live show of Jimmy Eat World, and the rest is history—well, sort of.

Jimmy Eat World recorded its first self-titled album in 1994 and released it on an independent label. The album was more in the pop-punk vein, closer to that of its Singles (Rarities and B-Sides) release in 2000. In early spring of 1996, Jimmy Eat World entered Big Fish Studios with producer Mark Trombino, formerly of Drive Like Jehu, to record its Capitol debut, Static Prevails. Rick says, “We knew of Mark from his work with Drive Like Jehu, and we really liked the way his records sounded.”

Consequently, a strong working relationship was sprung between the four members of Jimmy Eat World and Mark, which led to a lasting 10-year relationship that helped catapult Jimmy Eat World out of relative obscurity into respected notoriety. Four years later—and after several split EP, 7” and appearances on compilations including Deep Elm’s Emo Diaries—the band released Clarity (Capital Records), which was again piloted by Mark as producer. It also gave the band its first official song, “Lucky Denver Mint,” to be included on a film soundtrack for the Drew Barrymore goes-back-to-school movie, Never Been Kissed. “Lucky Denver Mint” was rife with pop and cleverness, but even with its dueling drum kits, crystalline guitars and catchy chorus, it still wasn’t enough to ‘break’ the band from the basement of Capitol Records, and the group was subsequently dropped from the label as a result of huge staff changes and the ensuing mass hysteria for boy bands like *NSYNC.

Luck, success and perseverance have as much to do with a band’s longevity as knowing the right people. After being dropped from Capitol and prior to releasing Bleed American (a title that was later changed due to 9/11), Jimmy Eat World was in the middle of a bidding war with various labels, all of them angling to get the highly talented band on their respective roster. Rick says, “We got out of our contract we had with Capitol, which was a great feeling knowing we were free again. We took about a year and made Bleed American on our own and went into it thinking, ‘You know what? A lot of labels, when they first found out we got dropped from Capitol, were like, ‘If you ever need a label, you’re always welcome!’’ So we knew we had at least a couple in the bag. So we decided to go in and record this thing and pay for it ourselves because we had a little bit of money saved up from touring and stuff. So we were able to pay for it and do it right, the way we wanted to.

“And we wanted to see if other people would get interested after hearing the music, and it turns out a lot of people were liking it. We were able to pick and choose, and we ended up with DreamWorks, which was awesome. There were a lot of great people there who were very patient with us and helped us make that record happen because it took a lot of time and a lot of hard work, and I don’t think a lot of other major labels would have been so understanding.”

On Bleed American, Mark sat in again as producer, bringing his years of knowledge and friendship to a band he’s practically been a member of since its inception, or at least for its first few recordings. “Mark helped us hugely by doing it completely on spec—essentially he didn’t get paid until we got paid, and so he did it for free for six or eight months and that made it possible. It was a lot of fun.”

The forthcoming album, Futures, is somewhat of a third installment of the Static Prevails, Clarity trilogy. Moving from the trimmed down, straightforward style of Bleed American, Futures has similarities to both Clarity and Static Prevails, in that the songs are more expansive, with more intricate vocal melodies and some seriously furious dual guitar work. Although, on Futures, the band decided to have famed producer, Gil Norton (Pixies, Distillers) step in and try his hand. What occurred wasn’t necessarily a better-produced album than the three full-lengths done with Mark but a better combination of the things done on Bleed American and Clarity.

More succinctly put, Rick says, “It’s really cool. We had a great time with Gil. We kind of needed a little kick in the pants, and he was willing to give it. He has a great vision for songs, and he really doesn’t try and change your song to make it a better song—he just takes it and fine-tunes it to make it the best song it can be. He didn’t rewrite the songs is what I’m trying to say.”

How many tuba players become bass players in world-famous rock bands? Rick got his start on the full-body instrument and says he was involved with school music for a few years. “[During] fourth, fifth and sixth grade, I played the tuba. And that was the only involvement I had with school music.”

He adds laughingly, “But I know that Tom [Linton] (guitar, vocals) was heavily involved in it from fourth through eleventh grade and played saxophone. He played the bass drum in the marching band and studied guitar in school and was in jazz band and stuff. Tom was really heavily involved in it. It’s nice when he pulls out the sax ‘cause I’m like, ‘Man, why don’t we have a sax in our band?’ He’s really good.”

Obviously, playing in a band means the people you are playing with are people you can stand being around for long durations of time. It also helps that those people continue to teach you and hopefully make you a better player. Rick says the things he’s learned are basic but important. He says, “The most important bass notes are the rests, [and] being aware of the overall song is key, especially when you think of what’s right for the song. It is really easy to be thinking, ‘Hmm, what if I do this?’ It would sound cool but sometimes that wouldn’t be the best thing for the song. So playing over the years I’ve learned an awareness for that.”

The next two years are going to be busy for Rick and Jimmy Eat World. The band members will be touring behind Futures for the next 24 months, hitting every continent and festival they can tote their instruments to. The first single from Futures, “Pain,” is a scorcher, and the dueling guitars of singer Jim Adkins and Tom are punctuated by the solid bass of Rick and the highly charged drumming of Zach Lind. Jimmy Eat World is currently gearing up for a fall tour and will come to your town. In fact, in some towns the guys will play two or three times in the course of the next year—so you should experience them live soon!

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