Archive: Oct 2005

1. Ladies Love Cool Peter

   10/31/2005 2:11 pm 4 Comments

   
   Peter Von Poehl – Going To Where The Tea Trees Are
   Here’s a sweet, sweet slice of excellent soft pop from an elusive young Swede called Peter Von Poehl.
   With aspirations to be a musician, Von Poehl moved around quite a bit (Austria, Spain, Denmark, Venezuela), before settling for a while in Paris, where he apprenticed in the Tricatel studio and did some work with Bertrand Burgalat. According to his bio, he later started a project there called Kang, but abandoned it. More recently, he has moved to Berlin and has been writing and recording on his own. This song was originally released on 7″ by Graeferecordings (a label he started with Florian Horwath) as a taste of his upcoming full-length. According to Peter’s website, the album is to be called Mummenschanz (German for disguise or masquerade), though that is probably a working title.
   I’ve heard a handful of the songs that will be on the album and I can say Von Poehl makes really great tunes – it is subtle, well crafted pop music (think Maximilian Hecker or maybe even Sufjan Stevens), using sweet guitars, orchestration, saxomophone, and his great voice, sometimes multi-tracked, sometimes solo – its gorgeous stuff, and the ladies will love him. Trust me. Play this song for your girlfriend or wife or whatever, and see if you don’t end up making out by the end of it. Its like that.
   Ah, and one of the bonuses of all this is that Peter has recently signed to our friends over at Moshi Moshi Records, so that upcoming album (slated for early 2006) should be appearing in finer record stores all over the place. There are probably still a few copies left of the 7″ this song is on, so swing by the shop on his website to grab a copy. Also, he’s been playing a lot of shows recently too, in Germany, the UK, France, and Scandanavia, (though there’s no future dates listed on his site) so keep your eyes peeled for more info on this guy.

2. Haunt My Pumpkin!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

   10/27/2005 2:22 pm 6 Comments

   
   Miss Fairchild, for those of you who don’t know, are an amazing trio of soulful, hip hop prince freaks. The live show is supposed to be steamy. As soon as I got the opportunity to bring them out here to the left coast on their first ever national tour, I jumped at it. They won’t disappoint. Check out this track:
   miss fairchild – One Love.
   Holy Fuck is a four piece from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Not only are they the nicest guys ever, but they make amazing dance-inspired music. It’s hard to describe, but they work with live drums, bass, keys and a vast array of other toys to keep things crazy. I’m out of my head excited for these guys to come play. After some wild performances at CMJ this year, I’m pysched to be able to personally bring them to the West Coast. This is really exciting shit guys. So anyone even remotely close to NEEDs to be here to check it out. You’ll be hearing about it on Tuesday, for sure. Give them a listen:
   HolyFuck – Tonebank Jungle.
   On top of all that, we’ve got other bands, guest DJs, blood popcorn, candy corn and costumes. The whole shebang costs you 10 bucks, or 5 bucks if you wear a costume. I’m going to be dressed up, as should you. It’s halloweeen. We’re not here to judge, just shake our asses. I will be dj’ing a short set, marking my official music for robots debut behind the decks. Get nervous.
   So, doors are at 9 p.m. on Monday, October 31st. There will be booze specials and snacks. It’s at Cinespace, which is here:
   cine-space
   323.817.FILM
   6356 hollywood blvd
   2nd Level
   hollywood, CA 90028
   Tell all your friends to come! This is our best party yet.

3. Break it like another habit

   9:30 am Leave a Comment

   When Aimee Mann’s record The Forgotten Arm was released last spring, I was struck by how organic it sounded. Her previous albums, for the most part, had the sort of production that made it hard to distinguish the distinct parts of the whole. Though this worked wonders for her masterpiece Bachelor No. 2, or the Last Remains of the Dodo, I thought this style lent a frustratingly muddy sound to follow-up Lost In Space.
   So I found The Forgotten Arm‘s live feel refreshing, and the fact that it had some of her strongest songs so far was also a big selling point.
   Lately, Aimee’s been doing some self-promotion: she’s got a new “podcast” – which I put in quotes because it’s essentially an extended advertisement for the record more than anything else – and an acoustic version of a song from the record.
   Aimee Mann – She Really Wants You (acoustic version)
   Shadowboxing With Aimee Mann, Pt. 1
   “She Really Wants You” is one of my favorites from the record, and it’s a testament to her amazing songwriting skills that it sounds so good pared down. The podcast is pretty interesting too, despite my snide description above; Aimee is articulate and good-humored as usual in describing The Forgotten Arm, a concept album about lovers Caroline and John.
   You can buy the excellent The Forgotten Arm from Aimee’s website or from Amazon. (And while you’re at Amazon, check out her music recommendations. Aimee loves Badfinger!)

4. There is a Wrist

   10/26/2005 3:47 pm 5 Comments

   Bodies of Water – Here Comes My Hand
   My guess is that lots of people around my age grew up listening to the same music — music that their parents listened to. How else could you explain similar musical styles popping up in seemingly separate parts of the country? When I first heard Bodies of Water, I had to constantly remind myself that they were from Los Angeles. I get so jaded with all the terrible bands that move here to break it on the sunset strip, that I forget there are great bands sharing space here too. But I’m sure these guys were listening to the same Joni Mitchell records (miles of aisles!), peter paul & mary, beach boys, etc. that lots of other folks were. It shows in the music, which is very much its own thing.
   Bodies of Water is a quartet, with two boys and two girls. It’s hard to describe the music, but it’s basically 60s/folk-influenced indie rock. It’s very good. I fell in love with it on the way to work this morning, and haven’t stopped listening yet. Each of the 4 songs on their beautifully handcrafted EP have something to offer. The track I posted is the first in the sequence, and the most poppy of the four. The second track, “I Guess I’ll Forget the Sound” is actually my favorite. It’s got a gorgeous breakdown, and cascading horns at the end. It’s great pop, with just enough amateur edge to make it sweet. It even walks a fine line, steering clear of the Twee label. It’s just great music.
   I would love for you all to run out and buy this EP, because I think you should. It’s damn fine. But, I don’t think it’s for sale. Mine says it’s #176 of 200 (they’re hand-silk screened), so my guess is there aren’t many left. I’ll ask the band and see what they say. Those of you in Los Angeles can check the band out next Wednesday (Nov. 2nd) at Mr. T’s Bowl. 5612 and 1/2 N. Figueroa in Highland Park at 9 p.m.

5. move your hooves

   3:06 pm 3 Comments

   
   I don’t know how long this has been going on, but since yesterday when I first stumbled upon this page of remixes of the Deerhoof song Rrrrrrright the number has tripled at least. Some of the remixes don’t stray too far from the original. Some are pretty catchy, some techno-ish, others glitchy, and others just don’t make the cut here.
   I haven’t downloaded every remix on the page, but here’s one of the better ones I’ve heard. It’s short, but I feel like it’s the most focused and stays on point.
   Rrrrrrrght – SFTCMH remix
   You too can get involved. Go to the Deerhoof website to download the individual tracks in the song (there are four), and using whatever means you have rearrange them to your liking. There are directions on the webpage to email your converted mp3 file to Deerhoof, and they’ll post it on the site. Get on that octopus, but also let us know if you’ve done so.
   Deerhoof is commencing a tour today through the next month of the western and southern US promoting their new album The Runners Four.
   Check tour dates here and buy the album.

6. Fine and Dandy

   10:00 am 4 Comments

   
   Dandy Jack and the Junction SM – Arabs In The Dessert
   Okay, so those of you who’ve been reading this site for a while now understand that while I often post indie rock or some weird, slightly experimental jazzy something or other, my mainstay is Techno music in all its glorious forms. So, with that in mind, I want you to listen to this slice of truly bizarre techno. Its a long long track, at over eight minutes, and it goes through three or four distinct phases, culminating in a strange, chopped vocal sample riding a nasty bassy synth line.
   This slice of out of control strangeness is courtesy of Dandy Jack and his new album, Los Siete Castigos (Spanish for ‘the Seven Punishments’*), released by the Frankfurt-founded Berlin-based Perlon Records. Jack, real name Martin Schopf, is originally from Santiago, but has lived in Germany since the late 80s and has been releasing techno, in one form or another, since the early 90s. When working as Dandy Jack, he usually adding a new, strange sounding cohort to that name with each release, ie: Dandy Jack and the Cosmic Trousers, the Latin Lava, the Plastic Woman. His Dandy Jack releases have, until now, been put out by Atom Heart’s Rather Interesting record label. Martin has also released work, with collaborators, as Gonzalo Martinez (with Jorge González), Gon (with Atom Heart), Amp (with Pete Namlook), Sieg Ãœber Die Sonne (with Pink Elln), and the very highly celebrated Ric Y Martin (with Ricardo Villalobos). Prolific to say the least.
   Anyway, Los Siete Castigos is filled with tracks like this, that take their sweet time unfolding – much like Villalobos’ most recent work (see his Perlon 12″ Chromosul) – with highly developed shuffling rhythms, many of which take on a Latin tinge with slices of congas and other elements reminiscent of his South American roots. If you’re into this sort of thing, I highly reccomend giving it a listen – you can purchase said record at Forced Exposure in the US, or Soul Seduction in Europe.
   * A Biblical reference re: Revelation 15? “And the seven angels who had the seven punishments came out from the house of God, clothed with linen, clean and bright and with bands of gold about their breasts.” Or could have nothing to do with this album, which is seven tracks long (and an intro track labeled Track 0 on the case), and I’m just looking for another layer of weirdness to this guy. Anyone have any ideas?

7. Take All You Can

   10/25/2005 2:05 pm 6 Comments

   Frances – Sale.
   I know that my friends on the east coast are getting pummelled in a nor’easter. I actually saw pictures of my old subway stop in Boston by South Station, where i used to commute every day. I don’t miss it one bit. Here we have slighly cloudy skies, 60-degree weather, and sunshine. What’s not to like? I’m sure you think it’s weird that I talk about the weather all the time, but I think it generally has an impact on what music I end up posting. I’m sure I’d post something a little more down if I were in their soggy shoes in New York City right now, and something even more different if I was baking in the sun in Costa Rica or something. But today, it’s sort of an Elliott Smith kind of day. But instead we have Paul Hogan.
   He recorded this album under the name Frances, playing most of the instruments. Now there is a full band, called Frances that plays live sometimes. It’s a great little record, with cool textures and atmospheres. The song “It” that was recently posted on said the gramophone is another highlight, with a wonderful accordian part. It’s a quiet album, with lots of toy piano and organ and banjo and mandolin. Paul has done some good work here, and the album is definitely worth grabbing.
   It should be noted, however, that the other songs don’t necessarily sound like “Sale,” which is sort of the most upbeat track on the album. The others are longer, more stretched out, and very interesting. It’s kind of hard to explain (you’d think I’d be better at this after writing these things for so long, but sometimes words escape me).
   Anyway, is it daylight savings time yet? I think they pushed it back to November, which means we have to wait even longer to fall back. I think Frances understands that too, as these songs fit in with the dark fall nights, and the calendar slipping away from you.
   You can buy the album direct from our friends at insound.

8. Hot butter is toast

   5:24 am 14 Comments

   
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   The Knife – One for You
   A while back, a loooong while back I grabbed one of my favorite MP3-blog songs of all time on Fluxblog: Heartbeats by The Knife. Since then, I’ve been uber-frustrated, since the Swedish brother-sister team’s label, Rabid Records, distributes only in Sweden & the UK, and only recently struck up a deal with the larger but still euro-only V2 Records for a wider distribution deal, e.g. import-only pricing on their albums. Le sigh.
   BUT! The miracle of the internet (and an itchy online shopping trigger-finger) prevailed, and their awesome LPs finally came within reach, or at least more so then they were in 2004. Their 2003 full length release, now a 2004 UK re-release Deep Cuts is available as a pricey Amazon import (click the image above for the link), but UK juggernaught Juno Records carries a special version which you can [buy for a measley $12!] (and shipping is cheap too!), and it comes with three bonus tracks not on the original release and a bonus DVD with five music videos. In short, it’s a deal.
   For those of you who prefer the domestic market, in addition to Amazon’s imports, their earlier self-titled full length is now available on the iTunes music store [click to listen or download], and has been in heavy rotation on my iPod for the past week.
   Here’s the thing – Deep Cuts is a great electro-pop album, maybe even close to being as shortlist-y for last year as Annie’s Anniemal. But their first release is utterly amazing. It’s been hiding in Sweden since 2001, and snuck onto the US iTunes only recently, and this thing is a true hidden gem. The music is wispy, dark, ethereal, and rich with the same type of breathy vocals that made us all fall in love with Björk’s first two LPs. You’ve got huge electronic crashes, subtle keys, melodies both light and heavy – I wish this thing would see a proper US release, even this late in the game.
   I’m as happy as a pig at high tide. As a clam in shit. Unless you’ve been hitting record shops in Sweden and this is old news, both of these are worth picking up.