tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59757751028213928362024-02-07T03:24:47.085-06:00White Knuckle Mustache RidesTwo for a quarter, three for a dimeBadminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.comBlogger868125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-2949242330397314402020-04-25T12:22:00.000-05:002020-04-25T12:22:43.136-05:00Moving Goalposts: Poptimism and the Tyranny of Consensus<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmBrRl7JGldKGtGLI55cSXFczvPrOVt3hpY99SS1ohNzJQyylbyB51CQYx8FTUQ_e5mOsYa7w-5-YmKyxIBcJr-4nPDLQkynLWOA2iDSV0iZqgJx7hCvJfMEf3NxdZY_V4ltY7rKRtZkOR/s1600/NETS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmBrRl7JGldKGtGLI55cSXFczvPrOVt3hpY99SS1ohNzJQyylbyB51CQYx8FTUQ_e5mOsYa7w-5-YmKyxIBcJr-4nPDLQkynLWOA2iDSV0iZqgJx7hCvJfMEf3NxdZY_V4ltY7rKRtZkOR/s640/NETS.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
Anyone who writes about music will tell that one of the bigger drawbacks is the "everyone's a critic" social stigma: there's a widespread notion that music critics are failed artists who bring an axe-to-grind mentality to their profession, essentially toiling under the dubious motive of attempting to bring the more successful artists down to their rock bottom level.<br />
<br />
The rebuttal to that hamfisted argument is a whole 'nother article in its own right. Yet the stereotype confers a secondary bias against the critic, that being that we "don't like anything". Even that sweeping secondary generalization could spawn any number of blog posts in its own right, but for the purposes of this particular write up I'm most concerned with how the concept of mediocrity often gets "rounded down" in the ear of the beholder to "it sucks", particularly when it comes to popular artists that may not be intrinsically worthless, but often benefit from relentless word of mouth well in excess of their actual skill set.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
"Yeah I mean Band X is really not bad at all, but I don't quite get all the fuss"</div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
"X is awesome. Why you gotta hate?"</div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
"Er, I didn't say or even imply that I 'hated' them. I quite enjoy them actually, just at a nominal level which is significantly lower than the boatload of hype they currently enjoy"</div>
<div class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px;">
"I don't know what any of that means"</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
"Basically on a scale of 1 to 10 I'd put him at maybe a 7, 7.5..."</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
"What kind of fence sitting bullshit is that? You either like them or you don't"</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
"I don't think it's quite that binary, actually"</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
"You're just walking back your hatred because you know you're wrong. Why do you have to be such a contrarian anyway?"</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
"Fine, X fucking sucks. Can we order lunch now?"</div>
</div>
</blockquote>
I jest, but that's not a terribly inaccurate portrayal for how many (most?) verbal discussions on aesthetics I have tend to go down. And I'm not entirely sure how much of this need to vet motivation first is a function of having that critic reputation - similar convos often transpire with no knowledge on the other person's part of my writing career at all - but I doubt if it helps any.<br />
<br />
I do think, though, that a lot of the schism in people's opinions has as much to do with how each of us define "mediocrity" (to the extent that we're even recognizing the concept at all) as it does differences in the actual opinions themselves; we may find ourselves agreeing that much more often if we were all using the same baseline definition of where bad rounds up to "so so" meets above average meets exemplary, etc.<br />
<br />
In a nutshell, I think that those of that grew up in the post-"Siskel & Ebert" era have been trained to think of entertainment in terms of binary values. I could be wrong there - maybe this goes back a lot further than that - but at the very least I think the "thumbs up/down" mentality of that show helped to cement an overly simplistic, yes or no idea of aesthetic value. Did you like it or not? Yay or nay?<br />
<br />
With that mindset the first word out of your mouth has established to the listener what your general opinion is, and if that first word conveys little meaning then your body language makes for a capable substitute: that squint you do when you're engaging in analytical thought? Ah, that's probably a scowl, isn't it?<br />
<br />
But mostly it comes down to the language itself, and for seemingly most people "mediocre" is a pejorative term, incorrectly synonymous with "poor" instead of the correct "average". By sheer definition, most works should chart asymptotically close to the median average, and thus mediocrity ought to be the single most common benchmark of all, yet this misconception that it stands for a negative value persists to the point that it's become a fairly useless tool of discourse.<br />
<br />
Of course, this discrepancy in definition would be a sidebar gripe at best if it weren't like pulling teeth to clear up any misconceptions after the fact. But for whatever reason once the other party in the discussion has identified you as the opposition they seem to want to go out of their way to keep you on the other side of the fence, regardless of whatever amelioratory explanations you might offer to bridge the gap between opinions.<br />
<br />
This symptom reveals an underlying "us vs them" attitude that is certainly a hallmark of our current political landscape, but I'd argue that in terms of aesthetic discussions it has a more immediate influence: <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poptimism">poptimism</a></i>.<br />
<br />
As Wikipedia defines it, "the major tenets of poptimism are that pop music deserves the same respect as rock music and is as authentic and as worthy of professional critique and interest". And while on the surface poptimism sounds like a laudable response to rampant elitist thought in music criticism, in practice it often serves the opposite purpose, acting as a sort of axiomatic apologism for anything that has garnered mainstream acceptance... it's the old "1,000,000 people can't be wrong" adage writ large over today's music landscape.<br />
<br />
The obvious rebuttal - one which has largely gone without saying throughout the history of criticism, yet seems to go wholly overlooked by the poptimist generation - is that there are any number of marketing factors that dictate what becomes popular beyond the value of the art itself. From the overt payola of the 1950's to the Clearchannel domination of the airwaves in the 21st century, it's an uphill case to be made that popular music is now, or has ever been, a meritocracy.<br />
<br />
Not that it need be an either/or proposition: it would be no less arbitrarily binary to assume that just because something enjoys mass acceptance that it is automatically undeserving of critical praise (ie. that its appeal rise no higher than "guilty pleasure" at best), but at the same time shouldn't it also be kind of a given that we sometimes elevate mediocre music beyond its intrinsic value due to some external factor, ie. it has a cute video or the singer is hot? I'd say that the history of forgotten top 40 acts of the past - not to mention the notable "one hit wonder" effect - is compelling evidence that, in fact, we as a culture do that very thing with the utmost frequency.<br />
<br />
This is not a new phenomenon, obviously. The popular songs of the moment that folks will still immediately recall a decade or more down the line have <b>always </b>been the rare exception to the rule, with the majority of disposable pop hits being exactly that: disposable tunes that sound fine in the moment but which will be superseded almost immediately with an overlapping succession of endless tunes with similar appeal.<br />
<br />
On the other end of the spectrum, with "indie" or experimental types of music, it is no less difficult to suss out what people will still be listening to a decade or more down the road; this will likely be largely a function of whether or not superior works in the same vein overwrite the existing music's value to history. But I would argue that at the very least an <i>attempt </i>is being made to isolate the more timeless of these works, so are we saying that pop music - much of which is intended for no higher purpose than to stick in the craw just long enough for the next single by the same artist to see release - deserves an edge over its more ambitious, underground peers on account of aspiring to less in the first place?<br />
<br />
"But wait", you say, "not all pop music lacks ambition to begin with. This is a straw man argument". Believe it or not, I don't disagree, but for me this is where the definition of "pop" gets problematic to begin with. If we define "pop" as simply "popular" music, then yes, I would say that in terms of critical appraisal it warrants absolutely no merit in terms of its popularity alone. If, however, we define "pop" in the historical context of catchy, melodic music with a sense of accessible immediacy intended for wide crossover appeal, then does it really matter whether it successfully achieves this mainstream crossover or not?<br />
<br />
The reason I ask is because, to my ears, stuff like <b>Sia </b>and <b>Grimes </b>totally counts as pop music, and indeed both have achieved a healthy measure of success even if neither is necessarily a household name, but to the average poptimist one can still enjoy artists such as these two, <b>Florence & the Machine</b>, <b>St. Vincent</b>, <b>M83</b> etc. but nonetheless maintain an axe to grind with pop music in general, the idea I guess being that if one can enthuse over these acts but find nothing of value in platinum selling pop artists like <b>Adele</b>, <b>Taylor Swift</b>, <b>Drake</b>, etc then it must therefore be because one is assessing an anti-populist cap on how many people are allowed to like an artist to begin with before a misanthropic backlash kicks in.<br />
<br />
Perhaps... I mean, there are certainly countless examples of expressed opinions that would fit well within that bias, so obviously the mentality exists. But on the other hand it seems useless to infer that just because someone digs <b>Grimes </b>they should also be a <b>Taylor Swift </b>fan. There is a sort of restless edginess to <b>Grimes</b> that provides an interesting counterpoint to the immanent catchiness of her music that doesn't seem particularly present in the more straightforward work of <b>Taylor Swift </b>(or <b>Carly Rae Jepsen</b>, to name another unapologetic top 40 pop star that has been systematically overvalued of late).<br />
<br />
In fact, for many of us the lack of appeal in a <b>Swift </b>or <b>Jepsen </b>is due in no small part to the absence of personality or individualism in their paint-by-numbers songs. The <b>Beatles </b>could pull off disposable because they were pretty much the best ever at what they did, but on a smaller, less ambitious scale the barrier of entry is much, much higher for me as the level of talent decreases exponentially.<br />
<br />
God only knows the tropes and templates of modern pop music are not alien to me, so it's certainly not that I don't "get it" on a broad scale, but there's little that seems compelling over the long range for me in a <b>Carly Rae Jepsen</b>, which makes me wonder if our primary difference is that I am maybe myopically obsessed with the future whereas my poptimist opponent is conversely unable to see any further into the future than next week's Billboard chart? Maybe I'm missing the opportunity to enjoy the moment, who knows? What I <i>do </i>know is that if you repeat something often enough at the expense of alternatives, then people have a tendency to rationalize the good parts while ignoring the faults. All I ask is that we try to rule out the latter before we assume any inherent bias against payola pop.Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-91023173636979827802016-08-02T19:48:00.001-05:002016-08-02T19:48:28.929-05:00Dylan Beale - Tri-Fusion X J-Wing (Sirpixalot Dubplate Acapella)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX_EyXUs82YgczIh5EoaOF4f627C6ZV76RpoX8eMW9g0Qi7m9cXhGzlq1r9mw4PyBSpeBSDvfBgl9cJfqP7PuZ7qLccQpE47E14L0xW0IfVLQNLUtLKDGRwCClHdTaNeuO1TxeXchog-Sp/s1600/Capture.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX_EyXUs82YgczIh5EoaOF4f627C6ZV76RpoX8eMW9g0Qi7m9cXhGzlq1r9mw4PyBSpeBSDvfBgl9cJfqP7PuZ7qLccQpE47E14L0xW0IfVLQNLUtLKDGRwCClHdTaNeuO1TxeXchog-Sp/s320/Capture.PNG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Only recently becoming familiar with <b>Sirpixalot</b> but apparently this cat has a regular show on Radar Radio and is a regular fixture on UK dance programs. This particular track has <b>Sirpix </b>combining <b>J-Wing</b>'s "Dublate Acapella" and <b>Dylan Beale</b>'s "Tri-Fusion" instrumentals with the Radar Radio DJ/Producer rhyming over top. The whole thing is sampled from an old Wolverine game (<i>Adamantium Rage</i>) from 1994. Level up, bitches.<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe frameborder="no" height="450" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/275312490&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-67007025331259500632016-08-01T19:47:00.001-05:002016-08-01T19:47:25.632-05:00Throwback 1989 || Orbital "Chime"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht3juM1vfMqgrSvUNQidEKTSbipGsyMeNUSPBRGsaatVD_UXnRFjbYxewu_Wtum7bYm9ZDfgkURba3JuJjmP_-dOOHcXuQQFLxBtN_S_DnbHui8GtI4Os4XPHrQazhsZsd8sr7smpLtDIx/s1600/Orbital%252BChime%252B128523.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht3juM1vfMqgrSvUNQidEKTSbipGsyMeNUSPBRGsaatVD_UXnRFjbYxewu_Wtum7bYm9ZDfgkURba3JuJjmP_-dOOHcXuQQFLxBtN_S_DnbHui8GtI4Os4XPHrQazhsZsd8sr7smpLtDIx/s400/Orbital%252BChime%252B128523.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Largely a victim of "what have you done for me lately?" status, <b>Orbital </b>emerged at the turn of the 1990's as an instrumental dance duo to be reckoned with, and "Chime" was not only their entry point into crossover acceptance but also one of the grand compositional epics that cemented acid house/techno's imperative to be taken seriously.<br />
<br />
Bearing all the upbeat, X-static hallmarks of underground club music of its day, "Chime" double down by demanding an exacting attention span: the song builds and builds to a near-10 minute climax in a different manner than most extended tracks of its day, which largely just consisted of repeating the main hook over and over, with just enough filler downtime to get dancers anticipating the reintroduction of the main theme. "Chime" took a slower simmering build that compounded rather than repeated itself, in a way that much anticipated trance (the drone-like German kind, not fucking <b>Darude</b>).<br />
<br />
The result is an endlessly remixed classic whose staying power is not only attributable to its innate excellence but also its malleability: in spite of the sprawl this track was designed by birth to be torn down and built back up again in other DJ's images, from further acid house excursions to drum & bass, breakbeat and beyond.<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/HXU5Rxc3vBQ" width="420"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-23033737555587502762016-06-16T16:25:00.001-05:002016-06-16T16:42:51.949-05:00The Record Industry Is In Decline, and I Am Part of the Problem<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjowH_iH5G-6y09DVcB0AFsoautNGJ46Ba6ZoKntcvTXvIHA0jXXdXEX12jUp0euxtzvpAv6mN9ixH816S9r8M0pLWJIpQOl2rmMhSdNSNXcW9kbIes4CG-05EzamvXNP9BgaluMYHKl77X/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjowH_iH5G-6y09DVcB0AFsoautNGJ46Ba6ZoKntcvTXvIHA0jXXdXEX12jUp0euxtzvpAv6mN9ixH816S9r8M0pLWJIpQOl2rmMhSdNSNXcW9kbIes4CG-05EzamvXNP9BgaluMYHKl77X/s400/images.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
"Piracy is stealing!"<br />
<br />
"Support the artists, otherwise there won't be any music industry left to enjoy!"<br />
<br />
Record sales have been slipping steadily since an all-time peak in the 1990's, and record sales have always been the key component of artist success in the music industry, so if the music industry is in dire straits there's a clear root problem to be solved there: you. You're not buying enough. I know I'm certainly not, but I suppose I can afford to be a bit glib with my headline there since, as a longtime music critic, I tend to get my promos for free anyway. Sure, they tend to be almost exclusively digital files these days, but I doubt too many level headed pundits would honestly expect me to go out and spend $15 on a physical copy of an album that I'd gotten for free and played to death two months ago.<br />
<br />
Or maybe they would. This issue tends to inspire impassioned arguments which are not always beholden to logic or reason, and when you consider that those arguments are positioned as sticking up for the artists first and foremost, well... the arguer has little incentive to shore up holes in their rationale. They get to be "right" in some capacity or another either way.<br />
<br />
I'm certainly not here to revel in the paucity of largesse I'm currently throwing at the recording industry myself, nor to encourage you to give up that completist vinyl jones, but in the interest of maybe coming up with more practical solutions to restoring the recording industry's preeminence it seems to me that there's value in picking apart the axiomatic assumptions at the heart of the most common complaints, many of which have been cyclically making the rounds for years with little acknowledgment that maybe their lack of results is a direct function of faulty premises to begin with.<br />
<br />
First off, there's the assertion - usually writ large with moralistic implications - that as fans we are beneficiaries of the artist's talent and are obligated to compensate them accordingly. When positioned within the context of such a broad dictum it's hard to argue against that point, although the actual means in which we compensate the artists is usually given a much slimmer interpretation: you buy their music, the same as your parents did and their parents before them.<br />
<br />
This argument is not so much flawed as it is anachronistic: it made a lot more sense in the pre-streaming heyday of Napster and Limewire in which it originated, when for all practical purposes there were still only two means of acquiring music: buying the CD or illegally downloading it off of the internet. In 2016, illegal downloading has been almost entirely supplanted by streaming options like Spotify and Pandora, but in spite of the above board legality of these streaming options we as consumers are still admonished for supporting these streaming services due to the services themselves offering below subsistence compensation (WELL below, in pretty much all cases) to the artists. We are informed, in stern intonations meant to impart that we should have known as much without having to be told, that until streaming services are able to at least approximate the lost revenue of traditional album sales they are, if anything, a part of the problem and not the solution.<br />
<br />
"Very well", a typical consumer might not be remiss in thinking, "but what the hell does that have to do with me?" It's an interesting conundrum in that the record industry is not the only multinational empire struggling to adapt to a changing tech paradigm, although it <i>is </i>arguably the only one of which it is widely implied that the consumer himself bears some large portion of the burden in solving. The U.S. Auto Industry has found itself in serious peril several times over the years (the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automotive_industry_crisis_of_2008%E2%80%9310">most recent of which</a> roughly coincided with the subprime mortgage crisis of the previous decade), but I imagine a Manhattanite getting by just fine on the subway and saving himself a pretty penny in expensive parking fees in the process would be surprised to hear that he had a patriotic duty to go out and buy a Chrysler (in this analogy the government bailouts obviously hadn't happened yet).<br />
<br />
While it's a perfectly understandable instinct to go to bat for a relatable artist with which one feels a kinship, on the other hand it's all too easy to overlook the shifting economics of the average consumer's monthly expenditures over the last twenty years. In 1999, the year Napster broke, the average American still had dial up internet and used a land line. The monthly nut we now allot to tech alone has swelled to consume much of the expendable income that we used to throw at our record collections in the 90's (a decade where used CD sales provided a sort of warm-up debate to the filesharing woes right around the corner). Many of us spend close to $100 a month for a combined voice/data plan on a single smartphone; that money would have bought you roughly half a dozen albums at $15 a pop back in the day, surely an at least marginally higher number than the average music buyer was throwing down for each month even at the peak of 90's album sales.<br />
<br />
And that apologia completely belies the fact that, so long as Spotify, Tidal, etc are legal, ongoing concerns, the consumer has no obligation to spend his or her money acquiring a physical music library when their needs are being met at a much lower price point and with greater convenience elsewhere... as far as the consumer is concerned, the fight for equitable compensation is entirely between the artist and the licensee, and doesn't require consumer arbitration any more than any other contract dispute between content providers and the intellectual property owners they seek to do business with. For many people that are bewildered at the fact that they're being chastised for not doing more to solve a high-level business conundrum, the very airing out of such internecine grievances represents unsavory dirty laundry which should be handled in-house, behind the scenes.<br />
<br />
The imperative to continue purchasing physical media is further undermined by the admission among many existing collectors that, in spite of an enviable stockpile of vinyl that would make the Library of Congress blush, they nonetheless do the vast majority of their listening via streaming... for the convenience. Well, shit, if even the lifers that never gave up the fight to begin with are still getting their most frequent fix from Spotify or Youtube, how reasonable is it to expect the more casual fan to pony up $10-15 a clip for a physical (or even MP3) album that they'll never actually use? Industry enthusiasts have been playing the shame game with consumers since the advent of filesharing, and the little they have to show for it has never caused them to question that maybe their arguments are one-sided and reductionist?<br />
<br />
Another consideration is that, at least in terms of underground or only semi-commercial music, there is simply more material coming out every year than ever. That's not meant to be a cynical denial of the diminishing economics of a reeling industry, but rather an acknowledgment that the ability for a hardcore music fan to stay on top of current trends in 2016 is almost entirely predicated on the idea of the vast majority of that listening being of a free nature. Like it or not, the barrier of entry in getting new music exposed has ensured that only the wealthiest among us could possibly hope to pay for everything we listen to and still expect to maintain any kind of genre expertise within the scope of those purchases.<br />
<br />
Very well, let's assume it's not an all or nothing deal, that we're allowing for a reasonable amount of free "skimming" so long as the consumer continues to purchase the music they listen to most frequently. How many repeat streams trigger the obligation to purchase the album rather than continue streaming it? No two people would arrive at the same answer to that question, which makes the whole thing unenforceable, if not downright asinine. In fact, the mere willingness to allow for any degree of free skimming by nature removes the matter from the sphere of ethics and makes it a subjective, practical concern. A mathematical problem, not a moral imperative.<br />
<br />
It also doesn't help that the labels themselves have often treated their most loyal customer - the completist - with increasing degrees of bad faith. The people most likely to buy your albums are the ones with the mindset of an archivist: they enjoy seeking out rare pressings, imported b-sides and the like. What they don't enjoy doing is paying full retail for multiple domestic versions of an album just because the Best Buy pressing has one exclusive bonus track, the Target pressing another, etc. And that speaks nothing of the even more common iTunes versions, which in many cases either collects all of the bonus tracks available in various physical editions into one digital package, or even more frequently offers extensive bonus content not available in <i>any </i>physical edition.<br />
<br />
Collectors being collectors, they tend to prefer their amassed libraries all in one place, and of a type. For some that may mean a bunch of daisy-chained hard drives full of MP3s, for others that will be a shelf full of vinyl, but for almost no one does it imply a partial discography on physical media, another piece of it in lossy MP3 and the remainder of it settled for on a streaming service. Insisting that such an anal retentive mindset (and again, this is the last bastion of your target demographic here) conform to the vagaries of confusing, unsatisfying - and, ultimately, expensive - marketing decisions just further erodes the case for spending disposable income on large music collections of questionable endurability and fragmented presentation.<br />
<br />
So the record labels are unsympathetic and the consumer's financial loyalty is being pulled in a million different directions... where does this leave the artists themselves? That's still the million dollar question, really. Sympathy for the livelihood of the musician (including the purely selfish desire to see them continue making music as opposed to, I don't know, painting houses) is the driving force behind these handwringing arguments about the future of the music industry in the first place; nobody's fussing about whether Def Jam or Columbia will continue to be thriving labels in the year's to come, it's all about keeping the artists in play. I don't have any ready made solutions, unfortunately, but there simply <i>has </i>to be better ideas out there than insisting on semi-voluntary patronage, throwing Scooby snacks their way based on individual discretion, no longer tied to any actual unit of fixed value.<br />
<br />
<br />Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-34966384305928220642016-05-18T15:48:00.001-05:002016-05-18T15:48:52.939-05:00THROWBACK 1973 || The Southside Movement "I've Been Watchin' You"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIbXEghBNP0DkrKvsZr0pM522SbUraOFZag4JMMVVvhiI3GxElkZd3j3bFh8D0hsZ1KZobnFfhkF2icJSpFLrgoyEZaEUtClfCdTYwHRJVQ0yJ20KyEx7rEaolvIWqG0nXRF37fB4S_vrT/s1600/R-7272468-1437808795-9254.jpeg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIbXEghBNP0DkrKvsZr0pM522SbUraOFZag4JMMVVvhiI3GxElkZd3j3bFh8D0hsZ1KZobnFfhkF2icJSpFLrgoyEZaEUtClfCdTYwHRJVQ0yJ20KyEx7rEaolvIWqG0nXRF37fB4S_vrT/s400/R-7272468-1437808795-9254.jpeg.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
"I've Been Watchin' You" is perhaps best known for the plethora of hip hop songs the opening riff has been sampled for: Brotha Lynch Hung's "24 Deep", Diamond D's "It's Nothin'", Beastie Boys' "So What'cha Want"... the list goes on.<br /><br />
Starting off in Chicago as the backing band for (even more obscure) soul duo <b>Simtec & Wylie</b>, the <b>Southside Movement </b>recorded their self-titled debut in 1973 for Wand Records. The next year's follow up, <i>Movin'</i>, produced another oft-sampled track in "Save the World". After releasing a third album in 1975, the band dissipated.<br />
<br />
<em><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2ySC-_jIzJ0" width="420"></iframe></em>Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-12422808443402605262016-02-02T17:05:00.001-06:002016-02-02T17:10:28.023-06:00Giovanni James: "Shame On You"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnO1YMofbZ0K85KlRe55Ojk5g85ErDb5uZ8aaIMeQqOLJyy25SuihttTkO47AMRDxhIbCo-BFTeZBqkOmv_VZDbUwXrEm7WuJiBqa_ls2YgI874tfgIKMfAeSLASIBGu3jLpohwbzzKIXj/s1600/12671847_1024434944303039_6770602163156933030_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnO1YMofbZ0K85KlRe55Ojk5g85ErDb5uZ8aaIMeQqOLJyy25SuihttTkO47AMRDxhIbCo-BFTeZBqkOmv_VZDbUwXrEm7WuJiBqa_ls2YgI874tfgIKMfAeSLASIBGu3jLpohwbzzKIXj/s400/12671847_1024434944303039_6770602163156933030_o.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<b>Giovanni James </b>is a hot young talent about which I've been able to dig up very little, aside from the facts that he has been picked up by major label Warner Brothers with only two singles under his belt, of which "Shame On You" is the most recent. It will be interesting to see if WB allows him to develop along this stylistically singular display of talent, or if they will insist on pairing him up with EDM/trap producers and attempt to mold him into a crossover pop star.<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VWy3PmMEh6A" width="560"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-37687493503243841542016-02-01T18:59:00.001-06:002016-02-01T18:59:42.681-06:00Harriet: "American Appetite"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlvRdLTHLaKhOilfjR_CmDSkHbVGHaY4NzR7AJuNopHTwwThbVVhoypV6y8Itzlj9_KF35kUVGovORB0OpzG65LHvFDU76J-jp2qERJCDd0d5o5GWsqlkBH_m-VfMAhTTDXtKS6EzOMCe-/s1600/harriet-e1330707918871.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlvRdLTHLaKhOilfjR_CmDSkHbVGHaY4NzR7AJuNopHTwwThbVVhoypV6y8Itzlj9_KF35kUVGovORB0OpzG65LHvFDU76J-jp2qERJCDd0d5o5GWsqlkBH_m-VfMAhTTDXtKS6EzOMCe-/s400/harriet-e1330707918871.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
I suppose this single has been out for a few months but I'm just now catching up with this week's release of <b>Harriet</b>'s debut album of the same title, <i>American Appetite</i>. There's an almost gospel-like urgency in the arrangement that no doubt owes a great deal to the contributions of keyboardist Alex Casnoff, who used to play in <b>Dawes</b>, one of the more sweeping, expansive sounding bands in the Americana/roots rock genre of the past decade. The spare logistics crescendo as the song peaks to swelling effect, with Casnoff's own vocals providing a warbling, uncertain counterpoint. <b>Dawes</b>' loss is <b>Harriet</b>'s gain, and ours as well.<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MSbrlk8PvGs" width="560"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-6979771839377643732016-01-12T17:57:00.001-06:002016-01-12T17:57:29.638-06:00Black Tusk: "Desolation of Endless Times"<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdr57rfv5T1FvJKyNl9GVViKj_fC2SSb8COKKvyWLy3CG4WDj03YwOgf24OvqYpAW5q-R_Pg_NGIuyi0OwuGuh33qu3bb0hB3VbzHbiDVpuy3d0ZitcN4gnjeNHLHNBCcydHhwd8IGZxQl/s1600/Capture.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdr57rfv5T1FvJKyNl9GVViKj_fC2SSb8COKKvyWLy3CG4WDj03YwOgf24OvqYpAW5q-R_Pg_NGIuyi0OwuGuh33qu3bb0hB3VbzHbiDVpuy3d0ZitcN4gnjeNHLHNBCcydHhwd8IGZxQl/s400/Capture.PNG" width="400" /></a></div>
<b>Black Tusk </b>is not the only Savannah-based metal band to face vehicular-based tragedy in the last year or so: while their own bass player Jonathan Athon <a href="http://www.metalinjection.net/latest-news/bummer-alert/black-tusk-bassist-jonathan-athon-reportedly-passed-away">lost his life in a motorcycle accident</a> in late 2014, fellow Georgians <b>Baroness </b>collectively survived a <a href="http://www.spin.com/2012/10/baroness-letter-bus-crash-gory-detail-update-photos/">tour bus crash</a>, only for two of their members to have to bow out of the band due to critical spinal injuries afterward. But whereas there is a certain amount of resigned pathos to be found on the latter's new <i>Purple</i> album, <b>Black Tusk </b>come roaring back pissed and looking for a fight as ever on new single, "Desolation of Endless Times".<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe frameborder="no" height="450" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/232364914&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-24354474443905651222016-01-11T18:09:00.001-06:002016-01-11T18:09:37.918-06:00RIP Thin White Duke<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt6pxKhFcR8QUl4xDaBqNwfZxP6bENNZiCdZAf2utYqilBHBe9-Aszf7BO_OpxpU8XddjJ9CD9W9FPzE_6ukDMG5EyhNlDHuj2grN09rQhDmODmAY9cdkbsyMFWVgv0NFgdLt4DDmuhwst/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt6pxKhFcR8QUl4xDaBqNwfZxP6bENNZiCdZAf2utYqilBHBe9-Aszf7BO_OpxpU8XddjJ9CD9W9FPzE_6ukDMG5EyhNlDHuj2grN09rQhDmODmAY9cdkbsyMFWVgv0NFgdLt4DDmuhwst/s400/images.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Unlike news outlets, who smartly compile obituaries for celebrities ahead of time so all they have to do is plug in the date and cause of death when it finally occurs, I'm never really prepared for these sorts of things. Especially when the artist in question does such a commendable job of keeping their condition on the DL. So, that said, I'm going to collect my thoughts and come back with something more meaningful here in the next few days, but pending a full eulogy I leave you with a representative slice of <b>David Bowie</b> genius, and while it would be both easy and expected to post something off of his carefully crafted farewell, last week's <i>Blackstar</i>, I'm going to skip the obvious ("Lazarus"? Really?) and go with something that straddles the line between apt and distasteful, which is for me the dichotomy that Bowie did best.<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/z3qm2tTD_oQ" width="420"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-29629333915004456612016-01-07T16:30:00.001-06:002016-01-07T16:30:58.909-06:00Tindersticks: "Were We Once Lovers?"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3x3GtrU85Q2yhhyphenhyphenQUH4FDq7qKFaZNscwqfoPQjKZ7WLtefwyslnoOnycmHQpLVvdG-Y7S25qG8zseu1VMWepYR9o1LcHWScNA3GpTAmJ73SLBB606iXQjnnDZmGPg3OQEnTHYE9_jshmE/s1600/news-15-09-tindersticks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3x3GtrU85Q2yhhyphenhyphenQUH4FDq7qKFaZNscwqfoPQjKZ7WLtefwyslnoOnycmHQpLVvdG-Y7S25qG8zseu1VMWepYR9o1LcHWScNA3GpTAmJ73SLBB606iXQjnnDZmGPg3OQEnTHYE9_jshmE/s400/news-15-09-tindersticks.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<b>Tindersticks </b>are pretty O.G. when it comes to this whole dialed down, darkened mellow shit. Starting off in the early 90's as an early, fairly straightforward chamber pop ensemble - think <b>Belle & Sebastian </b>on methadone but with surprisingly advanced musicianship - the band have spent the past two decades mutating that sound slightly but never deviating too jarringly from their central ethos. "Were We Once Lovers?" attests to this, the chamber pop elements subdued up front but gently creeping in over the gently shuffling indie pop backbone as the song advances.<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/x1DDgKWc2HY" width="560"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-68706003078096333892016-01-06T15:22:00.000-06:002016-01-06T15:22:36.240-06:00KILLER COVERS || Exmortus: "Appassionata"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhavO8y8uPFJRTK7yNtzwMHErz6XJNn9IOBRJJMONe23a5LSnXPOt0Bf9RvTO_pK_U75kOKnXjWED2eHiKQ92t1yFnEcZBt8thCArTsGQ2eaZmNVIQtm-zER1YPNk4lllIwKrnWoHnguIbs/s1600/1500+300+dpi+LP+cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhavO8y8uPFJRTK7yNtzwMHErz6XJNn9IOBRJJMONe23a5LSnXPOt0Bf9RvTO_pK_U75kOKnXjWED2eHiKQ92t1yFnEcZBt8thCArTsGQ2eaZmNVIQtm-zER1YPNk4lllIwKrnWoHnguIbs/s400/1500+300+dpi+LP+cover.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Heavy metal covers of classical songs are a dime a dozen, and in the era of Youtube playthrough videos - where complete unknowns, often teenagers, credibly shred their way through one virtuosic metal classic after another - the market seems as unaccomodating as ever for yet another commercially released Beethoven rendition. But <b>Exmortus </b>approach their appreciation for classical music with an energy and showmanship that is often lost on the <b>Yngwie </b>clones who think it's enough to just show up and flex nuts.<br />
<br />
<b>Exmortus </b>are touring early this year with a plethora of other old school-sounding young metal bands, including <b>Enforcer</b>, <b>Cauldron </b>and <b>Warbringer</b>.<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/KDnNIXpu0nQ" width="560"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-63957157132251161422016-01-05T18:06:00.001-06:002016-01-05T18:06:32.739-06:00Red Pill: "90's Money"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimwE0Y4hZv-vgesXDRWIco8XaAUakeyPtL4NBK4UmCCNs5OaPTt-CSyRCus869K7fagAYakpax4uaOUDvBZtZeJhWwptylNu5UYja7fF8Yg7vWExtkWiYm-NbJKLmczt6BG2YWvckX5Ia4/s1600/download.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimwE0Y4hZv-vgesXDRWIco8XaAUakeyPtL4NBK4UmCCNs5OaPTt-CSyRCus869K7fagAYakpax4uaOUDvBZtZeJhWwptylNu5UYja7fF8Yg7vWExtkWiYm-NbJKLmczt6BG2YWvckX5Ia4/s400/download.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Mello Music Group (not to be confused with the <u>other</u> <a href="http://www.mmgselfmade.com/">MMG</a>) keeps both feet planted firmly in the backpack hip hop vein, having released albums by <b>Apollo Brown, Oddisee</b> and <b>L'Orange</b>, among others, and this recent cut by Detroit rapper Chris Orrick a.k.a. <b>Red Pill</b> hardly breaks the mold. As someone who is still very much making the same sort of salary he did a full two decades ago, I can relate wholeheartedly with "90's Money". Probably not what homeboy meant, though.<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6sDYQpGhQQk" width="560"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-54702171831771185752016-01-04T08:00:00.000-06:002016-01-04T08:00:21.770-06:00Yuri Gagarin: "At the Center of All Infinity"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo68TNqOoRRPHEF6dSwl-fhFmR1Pi3t8UnwOfazvi1cJ_PvnQm92EDowmOTM96ioZIA0eR3qz-7lWpMV1mKlrozTPfxbDwvyC_mTnbNS7c8hSVSAsHTCh2QhYYZjB8ImcWth0f4ozQMyPZ/s1600/Yuri+Gagarin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo68TNqOoRRPHEF6dSwl-fhFmR1Pi3t8UnwOfazvi1cJ_PvnQm92EDowmOTM96ioZIA0eR3qz-7lWpMV1mKlrozTPfxbDwvyC_mTnbNS7c8hSVSAsHTCh2QhYYZjB8ImcWth0f4ozQMyPZ/s400/Yuri+Gagarin.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<b>Yuri Gagarin </b>seems like a glaringly obvious name for a space rock band, particularly one that is doing so little to reinvent the wheel as this Swedish export, but what these guys lack in originality they make up for in execution, compounding the droning synths of <b>Hawkwind </b>with the riff-focused intensity of <b>Ufomammut </b>amidst a sludge-like wall of sound that certainly transgresses the average <b>Kluster </b>knock off. <i>At the Center of All Infinity </i>arrived a bit too late in 2015 to make it on any year end best of lists, perhaps, but it isn't for lack of effort.<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rFhXMb0sFuY" width="560"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-26099873594204317162015-05-18T15:25:00.002-05:002015-05-18T15:25:21.785-05:00Stormzy: "Shut Up"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgAu-bj-QuHDCQ4J0x76xtk98JzPJxqXNeSKCuFUXwF4GWKLdAwv1MW0lrSQA7iU2byrTOhZr64Z7sXKt35Es81CNYJB9gX9S_r2CsYaQrvjJxO_hp9a1Ygo0-qM3o2j9vcf0sup8T6VuI/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgAu-bj-QuHDCQ4J0x76xtk98JzPJxqXNeSKCuFUXwF4GWKLdAwv1MW0lrSQA7iU2byrTOhZr64Z7sXKt35Es81CNYJB9gX9S_r2CsYaQrvjJxO_hp9a1Ygo0-qM3o2j9vcf0sup8T6VuI/s400/images.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
I'm always deeply appreciative when MCs step outside the usual funk/R&B comfort zone when sampling, so when grime up-and-comer <b>Stormzy </b>decides to freestyle over an old, bucolic <b>XTC </b>track you best bet I'm paying attention. The London MC goes in hard given the languid nature of the backing track, but somehow makes it work seamlessly.<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RqQGUJK7Na4" width="560"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-53127891419436916362015-05-14T15:24:00.001-05:002015-05-14T15:24:17.802-05:00Róisín Murphy: "Exploitation"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN4t_9cZybAgKk-2qWpiFxiWiWCsuyUuO6tAVUFZaWFBp1aZh8PlOEJ13ReqKkhaxPy5mmVBYHqC45zodKl-uPrE1ivm4ATwjkxxulFuavCvPOmUJ7OyHSb2ySHVGFAnWlgbPUMb7gc1QU/s1600/download+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN4t_9cZybAgKk-2qWpiFxiWiWCsuyUuO6tAVUFZaWFBp1aZh8PlOEJ13ReqKkhaxPy5mmVBYHqC45zodKl-uPrE1ivm4ATwjkxxulFuavCvPOmUJ7OyHSb2ySHVGFAnWlgbPUMb7gc1QU/s400/download+(1).jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Unfortunately I can't find the mesmerizing 9.5-minute album cut so this 4:20-friendly single mix will have to do. <b>Róisín Murphy</b> - of the Róisín Bran Murphy's, of course - spent the first decade of her music career fronting the seminal techno-pop UK act <b>Moloko</b> before striking off on a solo career that, thus far at least, has proven more critically acclaimed than publicly lucrative. Murphy's lack of fiscal fortune is our artistic gain, as the entirety of <i>Hairless Toys </i>seems engaged in outdoing even the mighty <b>Björk</b> in terms of flirting with pop conventions while still keeping them stubbornly at arm's length (please extend the similarities no further than similar intent; I could have just as easily compared Murphy to <b>Kate Bush</b> or even a less calculating <b>St Vincent</b>).<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NjSwFsPCeJ4" width="560"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-86792804522473026472015-05-13T15:13:00.000-05:002015-05-13T15:13:02.770-05:00Coal Chamber: "I.O.U. Nothing"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtwWTjMGKaNTUIsgMAO23j8fAari8um0nr4_lead10OqFhmTwRmeYr_p9MHr7fEYK7O8JMeiFs8DmQy80v2uDfx7owNwyiiMThzR2dZpQe01I3oMCbFtGwdllAC7XWYoo_16hb0ZrQ-mUA/s1600/coalchamberrivalscd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtwWTjMGKaNTUIsgMAO23j8fAari8um0nr4_lead10OqFhmTwRmeYr_p9MHr7fEYK7O8JMeiFs8DmQy80v2uDfx7owNwyiiMThzR2dZpQe01I3oMCbFtGwdllAC7XWYoo_16hb0ZrQ-mUA/s400/coalchamberrivalscd.jpg" width="398" /></a></div>
I don't know that I'd care to see a permanent <b>Coal Chamber </b>reunion sideline the superior Dez Fafara vehicle <b>Devildriver </b>for good, but as a (presumably limited) reprieve Fafara has arguably recorded the best <b>Coal Chamber </b>album since 1997's self-titled debut. The unnecessary initialing in "I.O.U. Nothing" - for fuck's sake, I.O.U. actually stands for the exact thing you've meant to cheekily pun it with - veritably screams out 90's dinosaur, but the catchy songwriting and Miguel Rascón's insistent pinch harmonics carry the day.<br />
<br />
<i>Rivals </i>will be out next Tuesday, May 19.<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/F85KX5ViH_4" width="560"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-40180089812772582592015-05-13T15:06:00.000-05:002015-05-13T15:06:01.826-05:00High on Fire: "The Black Plot"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKCjqah9dSR3e6wr-JZjTjmiLzuneaPD6YHTH2kMGjDl2LQtE4JrXSObTzJ16m6Cjzm1r9uCSnWwPqL0n-BZg8JwQx3dAWEbviVAuU5BHD3T29m8qSjSNKvFjro48a07PnJZMCMTlbxllJ/s1600/download.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKCjqah9dSR3e6wr-JZjTjmiLzuneaPD6YHTH2kMGjDl2LQtE4JrXSObTzJ16m6Cjzm1r9uCSnWwPqL0n-BZg8JwQx3dAWEbviVAuU5BHD3T29m8qSjSNKvFjro48a07PnJZMCMTlbxllJ/s400/download.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
It's been something like three years since <b>High on Fire </b>had to cancel a tour so singer/guitarist Matt Pike <a href="http://loudwire.com/high-on-fire-matt-pike-ive-fallen-off-the-wagon-a-few-times-since-rehab/">could enter rehab</a>, but the dearth of intoxicants has done little to temper his angrily defiant songwriting. Coming fresh off a reunion tour with his old band <b>Sleep</b>, Pike and co. reconvene for the upcoming album <i>Luminiferous, </i><b>HOF</b>'s first in three years, of which "The Black Plot" is the first taste. Nothing we haven't really heard before out of the trio, but then the band have never been overtly experimental, so given expectations this scratches a proper itch.<br />
<br />
<embed></embed><iframe frameborder="no" height="450" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/200928926&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe>Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-1505515010173805962015-05-12T15:54:00.000-05:002015-05-12T15:55:01.982-05:00STS & RJD2: "Tennessee (Whiskey Revival)" <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0mosxlPSEcmqYnky7fBuIYvNsImLjaU-Or_Alb8Yhp-mC78VmvSHBqK9SlCOgmAQoqgzzhuoiaGdMvejhvPdTxaF58Xbs-z2Hctywb34BCFMkay5bUZpPrprfXTqlDnEHOlf80dw0NRWq/s1600/download.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0mosxlPSEcmqYnky7fBuIYvNsImLjaU-Or_Alb8Yhp-mC78VmvSHBqK9SlCOgmAQoqgzzhuoiaGdMvejhvPdTxaF58Xbs-z2Hctywb34BCFMkay5bUZpPrprfXTqlDnEHOlf80dw0NRWq/s400/download.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Emphatically NOT a slightly retitled cover of the old <b>Arrested Development</b> classic, this collaboration between <b>STS </b>and journeyman DJ <b>RJD2</b> nonetheless has a sympathetic old school, juke joint vibe that has Dixie written all over it. This is underground hip hop so no Alizé or Moët, we're here to discuss whiskey.<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/_v-a_KSpiBg" width="560"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-73708458833708108642015-05-11T15:29:00.001-05:002015-05-11T15:29:19.784-05:00Part Time: "Pussy of My Dreams"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDXzWujTdrGt8rZq3kmxHmVdAOiYW7tfrP11WybE_KtbnPRxARKJkDnOXP5Yde-9ccYXNj2t9Ijt8f5fivwByXTEw_1s62ztha_95q3rlDxY0SrEJrMDWQomBDSg2enSdv-kapy7iKAESA/s1600/Capture.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDXzWujTdrGt8rZq3kmxHmVdAOiYW7tfrP11WybE_KtbnPRxARKJkDnOXP5Yde-9ccYXNj2t9Ijt8f5fivwByXTEw_1s62ztha_95q3rlDxY0SrEJrMDWQomBDSg2enSdv-kapy7iKAESA/s400/Capture.PNG" width="400" /></a></div>
Not sure how the title of this one made it past the SJW Shame Police, but suffice to say this cheeky little ditty is one of the more potty-mouthed odes to female empowerment since <b>Nick Cave </b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhUhWrqv9Js">last opined</a> about blue balls.<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe frameborder="no" height="450" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/203556628&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-86244323410068361192015-05-11T15:14:00.001-05:002015-05-11T15:14:18.072-05:00A$AP Rocky: "Everyday" [feat. Rod Stewart, Mark Ronson & Miguel]<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0HNN7kkxEDQVOd7zMFTAFmG67oY5dHZNPPvVXv7Utybwks83RNFdo4CjYXMqQU_TmUhd0BGmgYM0PhyvOdQ4kUnSLqrdaFUtN9aXKPpanz4NMphyUWjJifHTPQax8BIxeWirzOIm9jWv7/s1600/asap-everyday-556x560.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0HNN7kkxEDQVOd7zMFTAFmG67oY5dHZNPPvVXv7Utybwks83RNFdo4CjYXMqQU_TmUhd0BGmgYM0PhyvOdQ4kUnSLqrdaFUtN9aXKPpanz4NMphyUWjJifHTPQax8BIxeWirzOIm9jWv7/s400/asap-everyday-556x560.png" width="396" /></a></div>
About that byline: it's pretty clear that <b>Rod Stewart </b>is only present via an old 70's sample, but <b>Mark Ronson </b>and <b>Miguel </b>definitely make their contributions felt (and would <b>Rod Stewart</b> really be any kind of coup collaboration in 2015 anyway?). I'm usually not a big fan of "ballad rap", ie mixing rhymes with weepy R&B vocals, but only because they're rarely done this well. Nothing about this song comes off as overwrought, just introspective and mellow.<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ir8_cjKuy_U" width="560"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-75990399096574088052015-05-06T16:40:00.000-05:002015-05-06T16:40:37.682-05:00Onyx: "Fuck the Law"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3h05nrUk1sQb7WtTCVmgLYplIAVMLERJNuAej-F32fQryDjUUtyRcL2de_9gQfl6GUB40d6PzoktXCe7wDFj9-GF7E0QjtAOe19hzyGQV2qxh-ln16SL3ngbnf8i7hkJbNc1GgtS9EkZM/s1600/Capture.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3h05nrUk1sQb7WtTCVmgLYplIAVMLERJNuAej-F32fQryDjUUtyRcL2de_9gQfl6GUB40d6PzoktXCe7wDFj9-GF7E0QjtAOe19hzyGQV2qxh-ln16SL3ngbnf8i7hkJbNc1GgtS9EkZM/s1600/Capture.PNG" height="400" width="396" /></a></div>
Bacdafucup the <b>Onyx </b>is herrrrrre! <b>Onyx </b>are the second most underrated rap group of the 90s (<b>Above the Law</b> is the first, ironically given the title of this new <b>Onyx </b>joint). "Slam" got a lot of play back in 1993/94, but their next two albums, <i>All We Got Iz Us</i> (1995) and <i>Shut 'Em Down</i> (1998) only made a minor dent in the public's consciousness, in spite of selling reasonably well in the underground. <b>Onyx </b>came back last year with the pretty brilliant <i>Wakedafucup</i> but - you spotting a trend here? - it got zero traction or even acknowledgement.<br />
<br />
Undeterred, Sticky Fingaz and Fredro Starr are back with a new EP, <i>Against All Authorities</i>, which dropped yesterday. "Fuck the Law" is another zeitgeist-repping anti-establishment track, which should now be pretty familiar, but Sticky and Fredro have always gotten by on bristling energy and sheer force of personality, both of which are in abundance here.<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/73BlLTPlXHc" width="560"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-74092407871347015092015-05-05T18:22:00.000-05:002015-05-05T18:23:16.603-05:00Calexico: "Cumbia de Donde"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikXeIKcXubOekGFQDrGsasFnR7jQWiA_OvOl680XHVI4hY7Zfh0Gmf4Ky6_C1WgwCYg8GrlNlq8Wx1HzdfmLNekmy259izH0hyphenhyphen-4uzLanCgMVQNhOwDfO-1DZu5FOI8yGvT8dN1AGauO73/s1600/2553.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikXeIKcXubOekGFQDrGsasFnR7jQWiA_OvOl680XHVI4hY7Zfh0Gmf4Ky6_C1WgwCYg8GrlNlq8Wx1HzdfmLNekmy259izH0hyphenhyphen-4uzLanCgMVQNhOwDfO-1DZu5FOI8yGvT8dN1AGauO73/s1600/2553.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
This being Cinco de Mayo I simultaneously regret both my sleep-deprived inability to muster the wherewithal to think of anything properly Mexican to contribute while also lamenting my compelling need to post something this "almost but not quite". Whatever, this is about as authentically Hispanic as any Tucson band springing forth whole cloth from the forehead of <b>Giant Sand </b>like a cross between Zeus and Gizmo can expect to be. Ladies and gentlemen, the new <b>Calexico</b>.<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/tjzxxzBTNmw" width="560"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-43632500642922700092015-05-04T17:38:00.000-05:002015-05-04T17:38:26.661-05:00Panda Bear: "Come To Your Senses [Danny L. Harle Remix]"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUYBopBrhRyodd8LgmKW_LVhPxvsz8Iv5S-Xy95BBblv3D5u_6qAePi2jxZgp7VoUYQH8a5xVPxzmO7WtsJIpMYBM0ptz7sXHQuUEGNAWi2ahg6JNZel3Ri6aUYIGD9lKJNLXsVKstiJMn/s1600/Capture.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="397" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUYBopBrhRyodd8LgmKW_LVhPxvsz8Iv5S-Xy95BBblv3D5u_6qAePi2jxZgp7VoUYQH8a5xVPxzmO7WtsJIpMYBM0ptz7sXHQuUEGNAWi2ahg6JNZel3Ri6aUYIGD9lKJNLXsVKstiJMn/s400/Capture.PNG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
For some, this remix by <b>PC Music</b>'s Danny L. Harle will conjure up unpleasant memories of early 90's rave, particularly the first two <b>Prodigy </b>albums. For the rest of us that recall the rave scene as generating some historically significant music and not just being an incessant series of "James Brown Is Dead" clones, this "Come To Your Senses" rework is a welcome panacea to the dominance of the moody, tone poem art scene that dominates modern electronic music. I enjoy a little cerebral techno as much as the next guy, but it sometimes seems like the dancefloor has been altogether ceded to the hip hop/top 40 community.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<iframe frameborder="no" height="450" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/203437185&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe></div>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-24308136320153586782014-02-26T18:21:00.000-06:002014-02-26T18:21:55.287-06:00Feathered Arms: "Reload/Recharge"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfJLWzvPI1hP3pDtrL8x2XGofDexnJSgZFya_rIO1VxX5yKzUP3YNsN7K14egJhGJoRY3A4xpUoBwNGHqkRtMxSZZbNxzDfcVDcjKeVJcP52ihkeYZfGzT3hXcEoNXgqwS0stx2dUI8ndc/s1600/cover_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfJLWzvPI1hP3pDtrL8x2XGofDexnJSgZFya_rIO1VxX5yKzUP3YNsN7K14egJhGJoRY3A4xpUoBwNGHqkRtMxSZZbNxzDfcVDcjKeVJcP52ihkeYZfGzT3hXcEoNXgqwS0stx2dUI8ndc/s1600/cover_02.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
It took 20 years, but the girl punk, not-quite-riot-grrl-but-right-there-on-the-fringes sound of female-driven, Pacific Northwest alt-rock circa 1992 has finally made its way to Sweden. "Reload/Recharge" has basically zero influences outside the brackets of 1988-1992, but it's all the better song for it, being a legitimately catchy tune making full use of a pre-existing template. If <b>Belly </b>staged a reunion they most likely couldn't come up with new material as compelling as what <b>Feathered Arms </b>have achieved here in their infancy.<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/1A-lV3zcRzU" width="560"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5975775102821392836.post-58627404427796827892014-02-26T18:14:00.001-06:002014-02-26T18:14:35.375-06:00Cloud Nothings: "Psychic Trauma"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBu40TCb_x21V48OfRWMBPBkuKuqpRvYzGmO59BdJjV2zYE9m7So3r3M-AeTTbyX-Lbu8G0_MolCYdohMxcJe6ueBtHqsrQziiAfXy9a6b5X9CSCCaMFG2JWnTgeFXTSVCj0Hjz9b4F4VM/s1600/artworks-000071776541-j4di0f-t500x500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBu40TCb_x21V48OfRWMBPBkuKuqpRvYzGmO59BdJjV2zYE9m7So3r3M-AeTTbyX-Lbu8G0_MolCYdohMxcJe6ueBtHqsrQziiAfXy9a6b5X9CSCCaMFG2JWnTgeFXTSVCj0Hjz9b4F4VM/s1600/artworks-000071776541-j4di0f-t500x500.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
"Psychic Trauma" doesn't sound like anything you haven't already heard, but that's primarily because the component sounds are so familiar: garage rock, noise... and post-punk? You don't see the latter thrown into the mix that often, at least not successfully, but damned if <b>Cloud Nothings </b>don't pull it off. I'm a root-for-the-underdog kinda guy so I'm not necessarily pulling for <i>Here and Nowhere Else </i>to come off as a top 10 album at the end of 2014 - Christ knows they earned a lifetime's supply of accolades for 2012's (admittedly glorious) <i>Attack on Memory -</i> but it's good to hear the band haven't lost a step nonetheless.<br />
<br />
<center>
<iframe frameborder="no" height="450" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/136502141&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe></center>
Badminwearblackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11690961822856880658noreply@blogger.com0