Diggin' now... Cee-Lo 'F**k you'

Short post: This is a great track, and made me really excited for Cee-Lo's coming record. It's been a while since Mr. Green's been around solo, and this is a great come back.

DISCLAIMER: People easily offended by certain parts of the English language maybe should've watch this.

Altered Zones is a really great blog

OK, so I said I probably wouldn't post much for a week or so at least, but I went against my own statement to point out this new blog collective dubbed Altered Zones, which has some kind of relationship with Pitchfork, although what that relationship is, exactly, is unclear to me.

Anyway, the upshot is this: Altered Zones covers musical territory way down in the ether. The writers specialize in lo-fi, D.I.Y., emerging and just generally unknown artists and genres and they appear to know their stuff, in my opinion, based on how much of the music I've enjoyed already. The best part about the site? Its built-in media player. Each post consists of one artist and one song, the latter of which can be played right there on site with no downloading or anything. Then, as one song ends, it goes right to the next, meaning you can just let new song after new song, new style after new style, play and play as if it was your own iTunes. Don't like something? Skip it, because you can do that to. On to the next.

Another great feature, made possible I'm sure by the upstart status of most of these artists, is the fact that a number of the entries have links where you can download the songs and albums featured on the blog for FREE. Legally. That's right: Free music, legally.

Anyway, I've personally found myself just going to the site and letting the media player go. If something really catches my ear, I'll see if a free download link is included. Simple as that. The music might be a little out there for some people -- it's a lot of noise-style music, digital music, and whatever new term for such things I don't even know yet. But to me, it's been a great place to hear some new stuff. That's what it's all about.

I downloaded the Surf Noir EP from Beat Connection last night and am definitely liking it so far.

You Tell Me (vinyl white whale edition)

I've referenced a few times that, for the most part, I feel as though I have a lot of the albums that are among my favorite of all time -- the non-obscure ones I set out to find on vinyl in the first place when I got the record player.

I'm thinking of Blonde on Blonde, Velvet Underground & Nico, Led Zeppelins, and so on. Now don't get my wrong, as I've documented on this very blog, I've come across some very surprising albums that I bought on a whim or because I liked the artist but hadn't heard a particular record. I've grown to love many of these, and I've already really enjoyed picking up new releases on vinyl right off the bat. The latest Black Keys -- a group I'm convinced are meant to be heard on wax -- was great in this regard, as was picking up Merriweather Post Pavilion (finally) on vinyl.

Given all that, and the fact that I can still go into most any record store and, if money was no object, find a whole bunch of records I'd like to buy, I'm asking for help. I'm looking, essentially, for a new white whale or two. There aren't many of my favorite albums of all time that I don't have on vinyl anymore. So, dear readers, you tell me: Tell me what is or was your white whale, or your favorite record or two that you own, or one you spent a really, really long time looking for.

The best submissions will get a prize, most likely my enduring respect and admiration.

Diggin' now... Tame Impala

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- I have been witholding a post on this band, Tame Impala (great name), until I was able to really give a listen to their record, Innerspeaker. Too often, I think, I get recommended a new album or band, and I take a listen and I'm instantly sold, and proceed to sing their praises all over the Internets and in real life, too.

So, I first listened to this band and loved their album. Then I came back to Minnesota, burned the record to a CD and kept listening to it. Conclusion? It's great. There's this weird sense of Animal Collective-ish sound, with some more traditional rock, and some moment where I swear it's what the Beatles would sound like if they were still making records as their former selves come 2010.

Anyway, I've chosen two songs here to show what they can do. First is 'I Don't Really Mind' which is the last song on the record. Go ahead, try and tell me you don't love that drum beat. The second song, 'It's Not Meant To Be' I think shows a good cross-section of the sound. It mixed the sample-ish, dreamy-type sound with the things that make for a great rock record and the result is something that's truly worth a listen and, I think, is likely to end up on a lot of 'Best of 2010' lists come December.

Diggin' now... Thee Oh Sees

There's been more new music than I've known what to do with these days, and I say that as I share in the collective disappointment with that new (last?) LCD Soundsystem record, despite Pitchfork giving it an outrageous 9.2 rating. Frankly, since it's potentially (probably) the last LCD Soundsystem record, the fact that it didn't get a 10 from even Pitchfork, which has had a years-long love affair with every damn release with that name on it, should tell you something.

But, for me: You had to go and try really hard while seeing just how far this derivative (nice way of phrasing it) style could take you, didn't you, James Murphy? Why couldn't we just continue being North American Scum and keep having some tongue-in-cheek, self-aware fun? It's not terrible, but rather like the last movie of a trilogy or something that just falls flat compared to the rest of the series.

That aside, I wanted to point out this new record from Thee Oh Sees, 'Warm Slime.' I don't have a video to embed, but go to Stereogum here and check out 'Castiatic Tackle.' The whole album doesn't fit the following description as well as this song does, but it's what I'd imagine the 13th Floor Elevators would sound like if they were kept in a time capsule to continue recording music and advance for the past few decades. That's just my first reaction.

Anyway, I'm way behind on this band, but I'm checking out their 'Help' release next, and we'll see from there. But from this release, if you're into that quicker-paced, hard-ish psych sound with some garage-y, yet melodic, undertones along with it (how's THAT for a description?), this might be a band for you for check out.

Black Keys 'Brothers' (vinyl) review

I had been looking forward to this one I think since I heard it was coming out, or since their last one came out, or since Dan Auerbach's great solo release came out. Regardless, yes, the Black Keys are back with another album.

I was lucky enough to pick this up on Friday the 14th, as opposed to waiting until the 18th. That, in itself, is great. I'm just through the first few songs, and I'm already digging it. First reaction: it sounds like a mix between their older, super-garage-y sound the and the polished/produced sound they had on Attack & Release thanks to Dangermouse.

But I'm definitely liking it. I might have a full takeout/review sometime this weekend, but I don't know how useful that is considering this has been leaked for a while (although I purposefully avoided listening to a single note.) As for the release itself, the albums on two great, heavy, 180-gram black vinyl discs. The pressing looks solid, and it sounds great so far. It also comes with a big poster that looks really great and has the lyrics on the back. Oh, and a copy of the album on CD is included as well.

All in all, solid release as far as I can tell. Good packaging, great music. Pretty good for $26.

Why Record Store Day & the vinyl revival marks the death of the CD - if anything - in a good way!

Video killed the radio star. CD killed the vinyl record. And the MP3 killed the CD. In this progression of technological and musical advancement, where does the vinyl record's revival fit into the equation? I think only recently we've begun to see an answer to this question.

If you ask me, if there's any lasting effect that's likely to be seen from the vinyl revival, it's the death of the compact disc, despite what you may have heard. Think about it this way: for years there were vinyl records, which were the main means through which most everyone listened to music that didn't exist in radio transmissions. Eventually - and we've skipped the 8-track here - the CD came along and replaced the vinyl record in terms of price of production, portability and ease of use. That made sense, and the vinyl record was declared dead, buried with various other pre-1990 practices about which discussion has been avoided for obvious reasons.

Eventually, MP3s and the iTunes store came along, allowing people to buy certain songs and albums without ever having to leave the comfort of their point of Internet access, wherever that may be. Music was freed from the confines of walkmans, speaker wire and clunky boomboxes, for good or ill. Before we knew it, musical liberation was brought to anyone with the means to access the Internet and iTunes. Vive la musical revolucion! (...as it were.) In time, CDs became like a thumb drive, essentially a medium for storing musical data.

But then came that pesky vinyl record that just. will. not. die. Out of the ashes, it's back, and now there's this national Record Store Day thing that's big enough that my parents are calling me, saying they heard about it and wondering what I picked up (multigenerational fun!). Then there's the fact that more and more records are coming with digital download codes instead of CD copies -- who needs THAT? It's clear, given the recent strength of the vinyl revival, that it's indeed the CD that is on the march toward obsolescence, and here's why:

As I pointed out in this post, and above, since most everyone simply buys a CD for the digital data that's able to be loaded onto an iPod or MP3 player, the CD is more a means to these ends than anything else. A digital download, with a vinyl record, meets that need in a more pleasing way than a CD. When's the last time you heard someone say, "Yeah, I heard it, but I really want to buy the CD, you know, just to have it." And if there was a specific need for a CD, the low cost of a bunch of CD-Rs means that the musical data is easily made into a CD to meet whatever needs that medium fulfills. This low cost of production is a contributing factor to the death of the CD that, gladly, the vinyl record does not have to deal with.

But the point is, a vinyl record of music presents something that's pleasing to look at and very tangible in a way that adds to its value. There are often books or posters that come along with the album, and there's the album art and the records itself. It's all a nice bonus on top of the music that's available to many, regardless of their medium of choice. In this sense, the CD is utterly useless, a cheap plastic disc with little value outside of data storage, aside from the ability to walk straight out of a store and pop the CD into a car. And I challenge anyone to tell me of a time they last did that, or, better yet, point to data that show any significant number of people do that at all.

I admit, there's a large population of people who either download music illegally or just download it without even considering going to pick up a new album in a store of any kind. Sure, for these people, any physical copy of music is an unnecessary bother when they could simply download it via a click or two. But outside of this group, what we're seeing is an opportunity for the music industry to capitalize on two musical phenomena (vinyl and digital) decades apart that, coincidently, have merged to provide a great opportunity to an industry that's suffering under the weight of new technologies.

The portability of digital music, with the aesthetics of the vinyl record (with a 'digital option,' so to speak) present opportunity to capitalize on two different movements that are positive in a number of different ways. This is why, I think, the CD is dead - D. E. A. D.

Diggin' now: Erykah Badu's non-nude news

There's been enough made about Erykah Badu's (for-some-reason) controversial video for 'Window Seat' in which she *GASP* apparently (I haven't seen it) strips down in the streets of Houston, Texas and pretends to reenacts the assassination of JFK.

Right. Well, I've never really considered myself a card-carrying members of the culture police, so I won't start now. But what I will do is make a HUGE plug for Badu's new album which has been in heavy, heavy, heavy rotation since Thursday. Aside from her well-known and amazing vocal chops, the smooth beats are so textured, in a contradictory kind of way. Know what I mean?

Anyway, above is 'Turn Me Away (Get Munny)' -- one, and probably my favorite, track off the album New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh. Check it out. Soon-ish to now.

Diggin' now... Fang Island

It's been a while since I've had something new to recommend, but I came across this self-titled album from a band called Fang Island yesterday and thought I had to share. The song/video above is 'Life Coach' and it's one of my more favorite tracks on the album. Also, as you may already know form clicking play, the video is pretty ridiculous as well.

The whole album is pretty good, and worth checking out, I'd say. It's got a good mix of more traditional rock, with some heavy noise, scuzzy sounds mixed it. It got a solid 8.3 and a 'Best New Music' rating from Pitchfork, if you're into that sort of thing. Or, if you like to pretend you're not, that's cool too. Basically, for me, if something gets a really good rating from Pitchfork I check it out. And yeah, I can admit that. Sometimes I like it, sometimes I don't. This time I did, and, well, here we are.

Go buy Broken Bells on Tuesday

The genius who brought us The Grey Album (Jay-Z's Black Album mixed with The Beatles' White Album) is back, and I for one couldn't be happier. This time, we get Danger Mouse teamed up with The Shins' James Mercer and the result is sonic joy.
Anyone familiar with Danger Mouse's work knows what to expect out this album. Orchestral, synth-y, pop beats with pronounced drum lines at times. James Mercer's voice fits perfectly with the sometimes-restrained, subdued melancholy production. The second track has some organ work that's out of this world. Frankly, I already love this album. One of my favorite of the year so far.

I was lucky enough to find it on vinyl a few days before the release (March 9) at one D.C. record shop that will remained unnamed -- wouldn't want to out the supplier. And I won't go on and on trying to review the record because I don't think of myself as a particularly strong music critic, but I know what I like, and this album is pure gold.

It's a joy to listen to on wax, and the copy I got came with a small poster and a code for a free download of the album in digital format. Unfortunately, the site isn't live yet, but assume it will be Tuesday. What could be better?

In short: Go buy Broken Bells on Tuesday. Support this music -- it's a great record.