It comes around every so often, just one of those artists that hits you like heartache and squeezes the breath from your body. So it is with Zola Jesus. You may remember the last shoutout we gave her, and I’m probably safe in saying that you’ll be as stoked as I am to hear that her new EP, Stridulum, is coming up March 9th. All I can say is don’t miss it; this EP speaks for itself like a whisper at the nape your neck.
Jamie Stewart has been both the source of the creative energy and the deep-seeded angst of goth-pop band Xiu Xiu for nearly a decade. With the release of a new album, Dear God, I Hate Myself, which drops on Kill Rock Stars on Feb 23rd, FMLY got the chance to speak with him about the creative process, his Nintendo DS, hog calls, and everything in-between. Jamie seems both sophisticated and quirky at the same time, but sends out an affable and welcoming vibe even through the telephone; if that alone wouldn’t command your admiration, his music definitely will.
You can listen to the whole album streaming live here.
FMLY: So Xiu Xiu’s been around for almost a decade now.
Jamie: 8 years, yeah.
F: What has that been like?
via LA Lovecat
One of the best things about Sonic Youth is their ability to create an incredible force of sound that swells out from the stage and envelops everything in its path, and on January 9th Sonic Youth knocked the socks off The Wiltern in Los Angeles, having rescheduled a sold-out from a September date due to Lee Ranaldo’s fractured wrist. It was definitely worth the wait- the whole theater was filled with an incredible intensity from the moment they stepped on the stage. Any band that’s been together for three decades that can smash out a rendition of a song entitled “Anti-Orgasm” with such fervor that the crowd nearly starts frothing at the mouth deserves your serious respect. Luckily, we have Sonic Youth to remind us that post-punk didn’t die out with 80s.
The set consisted mainly of songs off their new album, The Eternal off Matador Records. Some of the highlights included “Sacred Trickster,” the raucous opening track of the album, the ballad-like “Antenna,” and “Leaky Lifeboat.” All their songs were complimented by Thurston Moore’s mesmerizing guitar work and the incredible stage presence of frontwoman and bassist Kim Gordon, who alternated between ethereal wails on “Massage the History” and powerful shouts on “Calming the Snake.”
Sonic Youth didn’t forget to acknowledge their roots, playing renditions of “The Sprawl” and, during the encore, “‘Cross the Breeze” off Daydream Nation, proving that they still have plenty of eardrum-assaulting noise soundscapes within them; time has only shown them how to unleash the power with discretion, allowing them to supercharge their audience exactly when and where they please. And at the end of the night, Kim left her mark by gently pounding her bass on the floor, creating a deep reverberating echo that resounded even after the lights had dropped and she had exited the stage.
Read almost any piece about Xiu Xiu and you’ll see words like ‘harsh’ or ‘brutal’ — the same words that appear before ‘truth’ when an unwavering eye is turned on any intimate detail of our lives. Fair descriptions of the themes central to the music, they sit incongruous to the refined, intricate, and beautiful approach taken in crafting the twelve tracks on Xiu Xiu’s new album Dear God, I Hate Myself.
-via CASH Music
The madness that is Xiu Xiu still reigns supreme. Dear God, I Hate Myself retains all the characteristic crunchy beats and wailin’ on pots and pans. This time around, however, the tone is upbeat and sunny day appropriate, fitting for a winter melting into spring. More melodic and instrumental than their older stuff, they seem to have taken the best of 80s dance music and smashed it with a sledgehammer to produce a more age-apropriate sound. This album is icy but crystallized, with shiny tones, manipulated and alien-like vocal sounds, and 8-bit experimenting to break through the ice. The album drops from Kill Rock Stars on February 23rd.
Anyone who knows me knows that I absolutely adore music on principal if it contains instruments going nuts, an overwhelming wall of sound, threatens to rupture my eardurms and/or sends me into a musical stupor. So, naturally, I am enthralled with Dead Mellotron, an experimental group from Dallas which brings together all the best elements of Radiohead’s Kid A era, lo-fi surf rock, post-punk hypnotic guitar drones, and drowns you in reverb. It comes together in something beautiful and controlled, but brings you into your wild side, sits back, and waits for madness to ensue.
Best of all, like what seems to be all other kick-ass music out there, their album, Ghost Light Constellation, is totally freeeeee. Grab it here.
Dead Mellotron- I Hate The Way Things Are
Dead Mellotron- I Woke Up
When the night slowly start to suck away the daytime as winter approaches, we all need something to make cold nights as beautiful as the day. So here is Bell Orchestre, and I think they will help me do just that. Their music is as epic as a great film score, listenable and heart-string jerking, a perfect blend between pensive drones and textural beats. This is memory making music, and its about to become the soundtrack to my life.
Bell Orchestre – Stripes
Bell Orchestre – Water, Light, Shifts
Bell Orchestre sports two members of the ever-beloved Arcade Fire, and is on the label Arts & Crafts, sporting our Canadian favorites Broken Social Scene and Stars, among others. As their best songs are too long to post, I highly recommend taking a listen to their myspace page as well.
Proposition 8 compels our government to treat people differently under the law simply because of who they are. That injustice cannot be corrected fast enough.” -Chad Griffin, Board President of American Foundation for Equal Rights
I’m sure you all remember the heated battle surrounding Prop 8 and gay rights in California last year, and although we were all disheartened when the proposition passed, the fight continued on. Now, two lawyers, Ted Olson and David Boies, are representing two same-sex couples denied the right to marry by Prop 8, and the Supreme Court has agreed to accept the suit on the basis of debating Prop 8’s constitutionality.
This is a very controversial prospect- even numerous pro gay rights groups are opposed to the lawsuit, as they believe it to be too early for such a case to be taken to the federal level. The stakes are high: the Supreme Court has a conservative tendency at this time, and if the case is lost it will be near impossible for gay marriage to be approved at the federal level in the future. Whether or not this is the right step at this time, it is set to occur and we have to do everything we can to spread the word and give our all to support it. We absolutely cannot afford to lose this case.
More information:
http://www.equalrightsfoundation.org/pressDownloads/AFER_courtDate_PR.pdf
Facebook group:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=210238489967&ref=share
Sign a petition asking Obama to intervene:
http://www.eqca.org/site/apps/ka/ct/contactus.asp?c=kuLRJ9MRKrH&b=5574543&en=rwKVJbNULeIZI9OPJmI1LiN3KiKWLbNZJkJ2KrPeG
happy halloween, friends.
The Unicorns – Ghost Mountain
The Guess Who - Undun
Hymie’s Basement – Ghost Dream
My Bloody Valentine – To Here Knows When
Matt & Kim – Good Ol Fashion Nightmare
In case you don’t already know: Dan Deacon will take your idea of live music, light it on fire, and throw it out into the unexpected void beyond to fend for itself. Don’t walk into the show expecting anything because most likely whatever you would have expected will just be utterly trampled and ripped to shreds by the end of the night. And I mean that in the best way possible- just be a willing captive.
To make up for his cancellation at FYF Fest, Dan played the Center for the Arts in Eagle Rock last Friday, October 17th along with Moses Campbell and Nuclear Power Pants. I almost gave in to my lazy side and didn’t go (Eagle Rock is no easy drive from the westside), but I just had these nagging feelings telling me if I didn’t go I would have the worst regrets. So off I went to probably the most incredible show I’ve been to this fall.
Bradford Cox, you’ve done it again. The new Atlas Sound album, Logos, drops October 20th on 4AD, despite the 2008 beatdown with a pirate. Thank your lucky stars Bradford isn’t one to hold a grudge, because we all need a little bit of the thought-provoking, dreamy ambiance that is Atlas Sound.
Logos is a candy album, full of hollow-yet-fufilling songs that drift along and pull you back into that very odd dream you had a few nights ago, all the while provoking the deepest parts of your mind to question your interpretation of reality. While at times reminiscent of Brian Wilson or Panda Bear (Noah Lennox is actually featured on the song Walkabout), the album does not neglect the electronic lo-fi bits that we all know and love. This album would be most fitting while riding upon a winged horse. Remember that for next time, you know?
Atlas Sound – Logos
Atlas Sound – Walkabout (w/ Noah Lennox)
If you’ve ever tried to start up something on your own, you probably know how difficult it can be to come up with the necessary funds, motivation, and materials to make it a reality. And right now, the music world is especially taking a beating- we can’t let people inspired by the love of music be discouraged or beaten down by a failure of government. It is this exact principle that inspired CASH Music.
CASH Music is a nonprofit organization building open-source tools and services to benefit artists and music organizations. It’s our belief that the need for technology should never get in the way of promotion, distribution, or support of great music.
Our goal is to help people in music translate inspiration into sustainability. We do this by working directly with artists, managers, and labels to build custom projects that contribute to a larger open-source codebase.
In our featured projects you’ll see tools we’ve built like music streamers and download codes, but you’ll also get a feel for how these tools work together to redefine what it means to release music.
CASH Music will provide the knowledge, the expertise, and the platform to allow all members of the music community to express their strengths and expand their creativity.
CASH is hosting a public fundraiser through November 1st, including a raffle with items donated by the likes of Deerhoof, Sunset Rubdown, MGMT, Xiu Xiu and more. In addition, there are some limited-edition stunning art prints and t-shirts available for purchase (design shown above), with all the proceeds going towards CASH.
And if you didn’t already think they’re great enough, they are even offering up a free-to-stream mixtape, downloadable to those who participate in the fundraiser, featuring tracks by Former Ghosts, Learning Music, Family of the Year, and more. How’s that for love?
People have to talk about something just to keep their voice boxes in working order so they’ll have good voice boxes in case there’s ever anything really meaningful to say.
-Kurt Vonnegut
At home, super sick, and devoid of a voice. There’s just something about being unable to speak that forces you into your own mind, so what better thing for me to do today than share some beautiful things with you?
Manipulator Alligator -Go In The Water
Manipulator Alligator -Til I Die (beach boys cover)
Manipulator Alligator- Don’t Go To Florida
I’ve been really digging Manipulator Alligator lately. It’s one of those things where you listen to them a little, and tell yourself you like them, then let them ripen in your ear for a year or two and then take another listen and realize the greatness of it all. I cannot wait until we start getting those cold, clear days when I can pretend I don’t live in a desert and have music like this feel so much more appropriate. Counting the days…
