As much as the no-vowels trend deserves to be shot in the head, there’s no denying that GRVRBBRS‘ take on Active Child‘s “Hanging On” is pure nü-disco gold. The Brooklyn production team takes Pat Grossi’s electronic slow jam, off Active Child’s debut LP You Are All I See, and slaps on a slick drumbeat and Miami-style synths for fantastic effect. The final product borrows heavily from Kavinsky and Justice, but those are inspirations we can all get behind.
LA-based Electric Guest released its debut album, Mondo, today. The duo, composed of Asa Taccone (younger brother of the Lonely Island’s Jorma Taccone) and Matthew “Cornbread” Compton, met shortly after both had moved to LA a few years back. Compton knew some of Taccone’s housemates, and after Taccone invited him to play bass and drums on a few tracks, Compton started coming over to play music all the time. One thing led to another and Electric Guest was born.
After years of working on Mondo, the two have just premiered a new video for the track “This Head I Hold.” Not only is the song ridiculously catchy — thanks to Taccone’s soulful falsetto and a hand-clap rhythm from Compton — but the two have taken a page from The Lonely Island’s book, brining just the right amount of goofiness to the clip. As Taccone waits to audition for a talent show with an American Idol-like set of judges, his nerves build up while the other competitors break dance and use a variety of props–including a pair of three — pronged swords — to outdo one another. Suddenly Taccone bolts, running for miles and becoming a desert nomad. After a nearly two minute interlude with a nomad woman and child, Taccone bolts again, heading back to the competition to face his destiny on stage.
Catch Electric Guest on their U.S. and European tours, with dates including May 2nd at Bowery Ballroom in NYC and May 5th at Rock N Roll Hotel in DC.
When I was making my 2011 list of top 5 albums I gave an honorable mention to a four song EP from a little band called Alabama Shakes. Four months later that same little band was adding a third NYC tour date after selling out both the Bowery Ballroom and Music Hall of Williamsburg in a matter of minutes. That third show, April 10 at The Studio in Webster Hall, was one of the best I’ve ever seen. The band tore through most of its debut, Boys and Girls which was officially released the day of the show, in terrific fashion. Tunes that were already vibrant and alive in recording sprang to new, vivid, rollicking life and the record’s take on old school rhythm and blues was a roller coaster of emotional strain and cathartic release. On top of this material the band played tracks from the “Heavy Chevy” 7-inch and a new song, all of which were straight ahead, Chuck Berry style rockers that had the whole room shaking.
The players in the band – guitarist Heath Fogg, drummer Steve Johnson, bassist Zac Cockrell and touring keyboardist “Styrofoam” Jones – are all fine musicians, but the story here is guitarist/singer Brittany Howard. I’ve never seen an emerging performer equal to her, and the energy she brings to every sweetly crooned high note, each low bass roll, and each biting, visceral wail is unreal. The rest of the Shakes are a great foundation, but it’s Howard who makes the Earth move.
Until recently, the Alabama Shakes were seen as up-and-comers, ready to take the music industry by storm with a mixture of fury and vigor. The band has since taken things to the next level, blowing the music industry away with their showmanship and uncanny technical proficiency. The blues ooze through the band’s much-lauded single “Hold On” and the video stays true to what makes them successful: a relentless release of honesty. I wouldn’t call it a masterpiece, but it encapsulates everything you need to know about the band. Their new album, Boys & Girls, comes out April 10 on ATO Records.
Pretty Lights is out with a new soulful single called “We Must Go On.” The track hearkens back to Derek Smith’s earlier days of combining verses from old soul classics with an extended instrumental intro as the heart of the song builds on itself, creating some agonizing tension in anticipation of the full melody. It’s a dreamy track that oozes with musical self-reflection. The accompanying video seems to confirm this with street scenes filtered on top of each other, creating a memory mash-up. Krystle Blackburn, director and girlfriend of Derek, adds grainy, indecipherable imagery that, in her words, “communicates a range of feelings and open ended ideas.” It’s a unification of sound and vision, and it certainly moves the soul.
This is a belated tribute to the short-lived but very much loved HBO series “Bored to Death,” which was officially cancelled two weeks ago.
Aside from making me laugh hysterically (and shed a few happy-tears), Bored to Death also turned me on to some great new musicians. One of those artists is Matt Duncan, an unheralded but richly talented singer songwriter from Lexington, KY. His song “1000 Boys” off of his tremendous 2010 effort Beacon rolled along with the credits at the end of season three’s fifth episode. Stream it below.
Above is a newish track called “All Sails”, done in conjunction with a Lexington music and film recording project called 10 in 20 (10 bands, 10 songs, in 20 days).
Both “1000 Boys“ and “All Sails” are rich, soulful, and intricately textured with warm, earthy brass tones and delicate layers of percussion (note the beer bottle tapping above). Duncan is modern blue-eyed soul at its best: heartfelt but relaxed, and enlivened with peppy pop sensibilities. Please Enjoy.
In a live session for BBC Radio 1 last February, James Blake took a break from his warped electronic modus operandi and stunned the music world with a soulful rendition of Joni Mitchell’s “A Case of You.” The track has since garnered all sorts of critical acclaim and found a place for itself in the classic covers hall of fame, a position cemented by the striking new video accompaniment. Shot in London last week and directed by film-maker Seb Edwards, the visual consists of actress Rebecca Hall (best known for her roles in The Prestige, Vicky, Cristina Barcelona, and Frost/Nixon) in a dramatically-lit bedroom pantomiming the gamut of intense relationship-related emotions. Hall’s heartrending performance is simple enough to shine in its own right without overwhelming the original achingly beautiful poetry and cover vocals, preserving and complementing the power of each. Watch it below.
“A Case of You” is now available on Blake’s Enough Thunder EP and the deluxe edition of his self-titled debut, both via Atlas.
Talk about growing up. Kenny Vasoli has gone through a number of projects of note. I’m sure we all remember pop-punk stalwarts The Starting Line back from our younger days. Then there was Person L, an experimental rock outfit we’ve featured numerous times here on ATG. The latest to come from the Philly native is Vacationer, a collaboration with another favorite of ours, Body Language. Many of you may already be familiar with “Trip,” their exotic, soulful, beat-driven debut. Yesterday Vacationer premiered “Gone,” a dreamy, laid-back number that strangely matches the moniker as well as its predecessor. It’s the kind of song that’s made for beach chairs. Check it out below and listen to more from the group at their SoundCloud.
Girls are duo Christopher Owens and Chet “JR” White. At this point, Owens, lead singer and main songwriter, is something of an indie rock legend: he escaped a strange and warped upbringing in the Children of God cult, fled Slovenia at age 16, went on to shack up with the prolific and eccentric artist Stanley Marsh 3 in Amarillo, Texas, and finally formed a critically acclaimed indie rock band out of San Francisco.
Owens is a fabulous songwriter, and the true power of his words, delivered in his Costello-like falsetto, really come through on Father, Son, Holy Ghost. Trading in the sounds of 50′s, 60′s, and 70′s rock’n'roll and singer-songwriters (Buddy Holly, Paul Simon, the Everly Brothers, Randy Newman, and more), Owens sprinkles on a touch of gospel and the occasional pinch of grunge. The concoction is a uniquely modern spin on a plethora of retro-infatuations. This record is impeccably produced, emotionally-packed, sincere, beautiful, multi-faceted, but all in an understated and casual sort of way.
In the words of the esteemed Sir Charles Barkley, you’d have to be a “knucklehead” not to make it out to the August edition one of the hottest monthly dance parties D.C. has to offer; Que Sera at Napoleon. This month’s version is called “Dancing in the Streets” and features none other than our good friend/ATG-collaborator Philippe Chetrit on the one’s and two’s alongside fellow DC DJs Aaron Baird and John Philip, or as they like to call themselves, the “Usual Buffspects.” In preparation for the event, Philippe has thrown together an essential party mix, which you can enjoy below.
Put on your party hats and dancing shoes because, this Thursday, it’s going down.
Tracklist and album art after the jump:
STREAM: Philippe Chetrit – “Que Sera Slaughterhouse Mix”
