Fleet FoxesFleet Foxes 2011 Pitchfork Music Fest

http://pitchfork.com/news/43253-pitchfork-music-festival-2011-video-portraits/ –  So i’m a year late, and several dollars short but thought i’d share this for posterity.

The cavalcade of hipster magic that adorns most summer festivals now comes in animated .gif form.  Okay so yeah, this is partly a post about how photographers Sanchez and Kitahara (http://www.higgsandboson.com/) have gone forth and made animated .gifs into something i’d love to hang in a digital poster frame above my bed (tis the future after all).  Plus, if  i’m going to have a seizure i’d rather have it induced by something cool n’pretty.

My kingdom for a press pass and a trusty SLR.

Cut Copy Cut Copy avec Balloons

Twin ShadowTwin Shadow

I know it’s been a while but today I thought I’d share some music.  It’s pretty weird, right.  So being the savvy person you are I’m sure you’re already well aware of Major Lazer.  They’re the collaborative brainchild of Diplo & Switch, presented through their Mad Decent label.  At first it took me a while to get into Major’s special brand of future reggae / dancehall.  But after some random playtime at this year’s Calgary Comic Expo booth, I couldn’t help myself.

Major Lazer & La Roux – Can’t Stop Now – Armor Love Remix (Free Download)

Major Lazer & La Roux – Bulletproof – Nacey Remix ft. Matt Hemerlein (Free Download)

These cats make for some fun listenings (and best of all don’t take themselves too seriously)!  They add just the right amount of humour to keep me intrigued.  Case in point: they invited Mr. Eric Wareheim (Tim & Eric Awesome Show fame) to craft some rather mad videos for Pon de Floor & Keep it Going Louder.  Alternatively checkout this video by the good folks at Trunk Animation.

Okay so now the new news.  Mad Decent just released the amazingly titled Lazerproof mixtape.  Yes it’s Major Lazer v. La Roux.  14 tracks of it.  And it’s all free.  Yes, La Roux’s been remixed from here till Sunday but again it’s fun and free.  And for you dubstep kids there’s some Skream n’ Rusko on there.  So get on with the downloading and listening.  Enjoy your day.

Allo allo! And thank you all for your continued support during those droughts we sometimes experience here at the Carbon/Nation/SplashFantastic HQ!

This was linked off my Twitter account the other day, and in the spirit of superiffic 3D music videos which melt our minds, I decided it was worth posting. Oh, and it’s a beautiful song, too.

Tah-tah for now!

Some of you may know I have a soft spot for music. These days however I’ve been quite nonplussed by the lack of quality in music videos. So when I saw this amalgamation of gorgeous 3D & sound I was quite struck. Struck by awe. Check it out for yourselves, and make sure to sit through at least a minute and a half of it. It gets better and better. Need more? Visit the Myspace(s).

There is some seriously weird (and wonderful) stuff going on in this one. Pedigree aside, Beck’s output as of late has been astounding. Definitely a top-notch player of this past couple decades.

But I suppose that’s what you do if your entire life is related to music. Ahhh, one can only dream…

I first heard this killer trio on a Radiohead covers compilation called Exit Music: Songs with Radioheads where they do a flawless rendition of Karma Police, complete with one insane crescendo. Well, here’s a few tunes they’ve done since then. You may recognize a few of the following tunes, as they seem to enjoy doing covers of super popular tunes. Smart move.

The Bad Plus feat. Wendy Lewis – Lithium (iTunes)

The Bad Plus feat. Wendy Lewis – Comfortably Numb (iTunes)

The Bad Plus – Tom Sawyer (iTunes)

The Bad Plus – Life on Mars (iTunes)

Anyways, you get the gist. There’s a nice line-up of artists, with 2-5 songs per musician so prepare yourself for a night of intimate performance!

ps. The quality is 10x better on the site than on YouTube.

Thanks goes out to honorary Splash Fan inspirer @jopesta for mentioning this one.

Here’s a few clips to bang off this Friday. First up, Moby’s absolute obsession with nerdy drum machines. Can’t help but be a lil’ bit envious of his setup. Next, a lighthearted tune from your favourite Fresh Prince character, and those ultra-pop Swedes. Enjoy!

I’m still surprised by the recent ruling of the Polaris prize judges. When I heard the hardcore group Fucked Up took the $20,000 I didn’t quite get it. Well, I still don’t. But I suppose if it has some innovative qualities similar to Refused’s The Shape Of Punk To Come, then it’s somewhat deserving.

Anyways, here’s my vote. If you haven’t heard D-Sisive’s Let The Children Die as of yet, go pick it up and get ready to let the tears flow. This is hands down one of the saddest, most emotional albums I’ve ever heard. And it’s hip hop. Real hip hop.

D-Sisive – Switzerland

D-Sisive – Let The Children Die

D-Sisive – Nobody With A Notepad

I thought I would share a lil bit ‘o audible fun I’ve been enjoying this morning. I was seeking some info on the new Imogen Heap album (which by the by I would recommend checking out) and while on said hunt, the good folks over at StereoGum put me onto Troublemaker. Josh Kouzomis hails from the weird n’ wonderful planet known as Los Angeles. Since the late 90’s he’s been carving out a name for himself as a producer, remixer, n’ all round good DJ. He’s collaborated with mash-up master Z-Trip and currently holds a residence at Hard Rock Hotel Las Vegas.

Now what I especially like is that he is involved with the H.O.P.E. (Helping Other People Everywhere) campaign. H.O.P.E. is a non-profit organization which engages artists in various fields to help raise awareness and funds for international humanitarian causes.

Now I can’t go into too much detail as I’m just getting introduced to what he’s up to musically. From the selection of free tracks he offers on his website I’ve gathered that his tastes are quite broad. The remixes are unique while still remaining true to the original. Here’s a couple to tracks to get you started. Enjoy your Saturday!

Flaming Lips – Flight Test (Troublemaker Remix)

Phoenix – 1901 (Troublemaker Remix)

Mastadon – Oblivion (Troublemaker Remix)

555 KUBIK | facade projection | from urbanscreen

Just a quick tip for this lovely humpday set upon us. If you live in the Montréal area, and are not already pre-occupied by the Concordia Electro-acoustics festival you should check out Pop Montreal premiere of NOSAJ THING’s visual show (see above video).

Oh, oh yes.

In my younger years I would play a song or entire album on repeat. These days, it’s not usual for me to loop good content over and over for fear of ruining it, but I just can’t help it with this one. I believe my only recent regret is not knowing about Nova Scotia’s Amelia Curran before this month’s trip to Halifax. Anyhow, this tune seems like a suiting mood for the brisk fall Friday headed our way.

Amelia Curran – The Mistress – { Album: 2009’s Hunter Hunter }

Chuck here. I’ve recently returned from an elongated trip to both Halifax & the recording studio life. It was a worthwhile vacation from the everyday, but I’m glad to be back in full fledged force. Now I think it’s time to share a few albums that I have recently been digging.

1. Make sure to pick up/download the album “Here Come The Warm Jets” If this Brian Eno tune interests you, as it’ll take you directly into a different headspace. To tell you the truth, this is the first Eno album I’ve spent a lot of time with. But I’ve always been intrigued by those who are a bit on the insane side, who aren’t afraid to take risks with the listener’s minds.

2. I really dig the bounce between the harsh reverb choral line and the lead vocals on this Bruce Peninsula track. I’m looking forward to seeing this group at Pop Montréal come the end of the month!

3. In my mind, I’ve always been quite impressed by how easily Grandaddy manages to mix surrealistic, electronic waves with straightforward rock rhythms. For them, it’s a seamless endeavour that probably took hours upon hours of serious rehearsal to nail.

4. If you’re currently (or was in the past) a fan of Modest Mouse, you should definitely give Ugly Cassanova a listen. Below is an introduction into Brock’s psycho-reality, complete with multiple overdubbed vocal lines.

Brian Eno – Dead Finks Don’t Talk – { 1974’s Here Come The Warm Jets }

Bruce Peninsula – Streamroller – { 2008’s A Mountain is a Mouth }

Grandaddy – Everything Beautiful is Far Away – { 1997’s Under The Western Freeway }

Ugly Cassanova – Hotcha Girls – { 2002’s Sharpen Your Teeth }

Whew, it’s been a while! Oh how easy it is to get caught up working on ot’er t’ings.

I know you were hoping for something dark, brooding and fun to listen to today. Some new music to saturate those neurons of yours. That’s why I bring you Thus:Owls, one glorious Swedish/Montréalish endeavor whose debut album ‘Cardiac Malformations’ came out earlier this year in this great land of ours. Often described as sharp, and often compared to The Knife/Fever Ray. Anyways, enough banter, here goes!

Thus:Owls – Climbing the Fjelds of Norway – { 2009’s Cardiac Malformations }

Thus:Owls – Yellow Desert – { 2009’s Cardiac Malformations }

So the scene is set something like this… London. January 18, 2004. Strictly Kev (aka DJ Food, aka Kevin Foakes) of Ninja Tune fame premieres his Raiding the 20th Century mix on XFM Radio. This 40 minute mix traversed the full spectrum of cut-up / mash-up music.  Shortly after he is introduced to Paul Morley’s book Words & Music.  This book aimed at providing a concise history of pop music.  Kev quickly realized how closely his mix echoed the themes of Morley’s book.  From this he decided to track Morley down and work with him to expand the mix.  Exactly one year later, a full one hour mix is released, now with additional material and excerpts of Morley reading.

Now for those super in-the-know this is old news, but I apparently missed it and thought “hey, maybe I’m not the only one”.  I have already given this several rotations (perhaps too many).  This mix goes beyond the simple mash-up and provides a valuable addition to the history of communication theory.  I could drone on about this but I recommend you just go ahead and download this one… is free!

Strictly Kev – Raiding the 20th Century

AmazingPhotography by Lindsey Baker.

You may have noticed my last post about the creative community mapping project Imaginary Ordinary. Now I neglected to touch on the original reason for my visiting the space. I thought it was worthy of its own post.

The event on Saturday evening included music by some incredibly talented individuals. One such individual (well group of individuals) was Samantha Savage Smith. Words can’t adequately describe the blown-away-ness. The songs are beautifully polished and yes you will fall in love with Samantha’s voice. Even in between songs they seemed to be in their element (element being defined here as a state of engaging wit and comfort). I don’t want to fawn too much as I think it’s best you experience it with your own ears. So on with the music!

Samantha Savage Smith – The Score - { Upcoming EP }

Samantha Savage Smith – The Fight - { Upcoming EP }

This past weekend I was introduced to Imaginary Ordinary; which is both wonderfully imaginative and far from ordinary. The concept has been dubbed a social networking & community mapping project. I love this community mapping idea. I’ll let them explain in their own words:

Imaginary Ordinary is a social networking site [physical location] where different groups or individuals of all ages can meet and connect with one another. Imaginary Ordinary is a community centre—a place where everybody in the neighbourhood can come to participate in activities, share information, or simply to browse and hang out. Community centres can create a “map” of a community. They identify and connect the people who live, work, and play within a neighbourhood.

The project is curated and managed by the dynamic duo of Eric Moschopedis and Laura Leif.   I had the chance to speak with both during an event this past Saturday. I must admit I was inspired by their creativity and commitment to community building.  I will leave you to visit their website to learn more, but sadly their current location is a temporary installation.  So be sure to get down there and enjoy one of their numerous events before the closing party on Aug. 29th.  Psst, might I recommend Choose Yer Own (Aug. 13th – Aug. 16th).

Somewhere in New Jersey there is a man taking popular music and arranging them For Orchestra!  This just may be the text book definition of awesome.  Walt Rebeiro is a music composer and instructor who just can’t seem to stop doing great things.  Since July 2007 his website waltribeiro.net has been a destination for those seeking fun and intelligent music instruction videos.  All of this has not gone unnoticed.  Mr. Rebeiro has been featured in Wired Magazine, The Wall Street Journal and the LA Times (to name only a few).

His For Orchestra project appears to have began in May 2009 and I must warn you; prepare to have a new appreciation for the actual composition of those oh so familiar tunes.  When given this new context the seemingly simplistic light-weight pop song takes on a grand scale and epic nature.  You can purchase any of his tunes direct from his website for only $1.

There’s a couple videos after the jump but let me just say, if you’re feeling the want to hear Lady Gaga, Michael Jackson, Radiohead, Rick Astley and others set to classic orchestra visit For Orchestra.

Albums which musically inspire while raising awareness for important social causes deserve a little due credit. Dark Was The Night is one such album. This double disc was released in February of this year through Red Hot Organization. Since 1989, Red Hot Organization has been releasing music compilations, producing media events and crafting television programs geared towards raising funds for the battle against HIV and AIDS.  A noble goal and considering they’ve raised over $7 million since inception, it appears to be working.

Now perhaps it helps if we present a list of the artists involved in this project:

Andrew Bird, Antony, Arcade Fire, Beach House, Beirut, Blonde Redhead, Bon Iver, The Books, Buck 65, David Byrne, Cat Power & Dirty Delta Blues, The Decemberists, Aaron Dessner, Bryce Dessner, Devastations, Dirty Projectors, Kevin Drew, Feist, Ben Gibbard, Grizzly Bear, Iron & Wine, Jose Gonzalez, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, Kronos Quartet, Stuart Murdoch, My Brightest Diamond, My Morning Jacket, The National, The New Pornographers, Conor Oberst, Riceboy Sleeps, Serengeti, Dave Sitek, Spoon, Sufjan Stevens, Gillian Welch, Yeasayer, Yo La Tengo

Yes it sounds as good as it looks. Here’s the first two tracks to inspire you to put some of those hard earned dollars towards this one. I may even have to grab this on vinyl.

Dirty Projectors & David Byrne – Knotty Pine - { Dark Was The Night, Released: February 2009 }

The Books & José González – Cello Song (Nick Drake Cover) - { Dark Was The Night, Released: February 2009 }