Wow. This is exactly how I feel

Check out this great article about year end lists and sharing music in general.

http://pitchfork.com/features/resonant-frequency/7902-resonant-frequency-75/

Besty Coasty - Crazy For You

Yeah, that's their blogspot name, bestycoasty.blogspot.com. It's also a clever way for me to disguise the post. Seeing as how I posted a few of the 7" a while back, I figured I might as well finish it off and post their first full length. There are a lot of mixed feelings floating around out there for this album. Sure, you could accuse Bethany of writing unsophisticated hackneyed lyrics... and you'd probably have a good point. OR you could also say that Best Coast are writing some of the most HONEST music around. And that's what I get out of this record. Crazy For You does a good job of brightening up your day while raining on your parade. It's kind of a sad love song record (in a way that you never get the person you want), only it's set to music that you would throw on while your playing Ultimate Frisbee (or whatever people do) on the beach. There is a fine line there that most artists couldn't tightrope their way across, but Best Coast handle the dueling dichotomy beautifully. All the lyrics snobs need to get off their high horses and come down to play in the sand with the rest of us. I can't think of any more beach metaphors so that means this post is over. Chiggity check it.




Crazy For You

P.S.
Best. Cover. Ever.

This time on "Take a Leak"

Here we have Les Savy Fav and their new album Root For Ruin. First thing's first. I wanna talk for a second about my miscalculation the other day. Okay... so after a few more listens the new Arcade Fire is starting to grow on me quite a bit. It gave me a similar feeling that their first album did, only for completely different reasons. Funeral was challenging to listen to and kind of off putting at first, but after repeated listens you found yourself more and more engrossed in the sound. The Suburbs was TOO easy to listen to and made you feel like it was too straight forward for a band that took many risks in the past. Once again, with repeated listens, I'm finding more and more to be impressed by than just the production and song structure. So... it just goes to show you that you should give music a fair chance before writing it off because you might actually be missing out. Annnnnnyway. With this leak, Les Savy Fav's, Root For Ruin, I had no such problem. This was immediately appealing, and I'm actually fairly happy about that. RFR reminds me of how they sound live which is a very good thing. I mean... they needed an album to just kind of kick your ass in the face (it's possible), and this is it. So yeah... I've been talking for far too long. It's awesome. Download and get your assface kicked. The end.

P.S. There is no album artwork yet. So ...uh... deal with this instead.




Root For Ruin

Take a Leak!

On this edition of "take a leak (with me)", we have possibly the most anticipated album of 2010: Arcade Fire's, The Suburbs. I'm sure this won't last long, so get it while it's hot. I have only listened to it a few times, but I have to say that I'm a little bit disappointed. It almost sounds too clean for arcade fire. The drums are boring and so is the production. They don't seem to be pushing their creative limits, more so they are just writing standard pop songs. It's also a bit LONG of an album for them. They could have easily trimmed the fat a little bit and cut out some of the lesser songs, especially towards the 2nd half which is where I think the album starts to falter. You get the feeling there is an amazing album in here somewhere. But like I said, I've only listened to it a few times, and who knows how much it could grow on me. Also, a mediocre Arcade Fire album will still probably end up as one of the best albums of the year. Maybe I just had the bar set too high. Either way... I was super excited to get this shit as early as I did... so don't let me ruin the excitement for you. You could very well love it. So check it quickly before the post gets pulled.

Plus... check out the 8 different covers of the album. Think they were making a statement about the general similarities of the omnipresent suburbs? Naw.



The Suburbs

Broken Social Scene - Meet Me in the Basement (video)

Check out this pretty cool fan made video for Meet Me in the Basement. Kevin Drew told pitchfork that he thought the world was doomed and that we are constantly trying to distract ourselves from our own self destruction... which is essentially what this video tries to convey. Good job, buddy... whoever you are.

Dimlite - Prismic Tops EP

Dimlite is the SHIT. Don't believe me? Watch this.



Apparently some interviewer asked him how he made a certain beat and what sample he used (which he finds out is a big no-no). So sighed heavily, got up, showed him how it was done, then kicked him out. Aweseome. I can't wait until this dude drops his much anticipated new LP. He keeps on pushing it back. At least this time he released something to hold us fans over. I'll take it! Also...hurry up and get on that shit. I want MOARRRRRR!




Prismic Tops

Tobacco - Maniac Meat

Man. I think this one is a little underrated. Sure, it's not the most genius record ever, but god damn, is it so much fun. I think this has got to be one of the best records to play very fucking loudly in your car. Bump this shit like crazy. I really dig the Beck tracks, just because it reminds me of old school Beck (I miss that guy). It's abrasive, loud, and crunchy but it has this amazingly playful quality to it. You get the feeling Tobacco is just trying to make music that HE thinks is good. It's music for musicians and production junkies. Trust me when I say, that attribute is defintely felt... loud and clear.




Maniac Meat

Caddywhompus - Remainder

For some odd reason, lately I've been getting a ton of bands requesting to post their music on my blog. The problem is that virtually all of them range from horribly awful to obliviously derivative. It's gotten so bad that I've started opening every email thinking, "Oh god, not another one". Most of the bands only want me to link a single or whatever, but that's not going to happen. I'm not an MP3 blog. But a few have asked me to post their albums, which was way cooler of them... but even then most were just not very good.

The latest email was from these guys ----> Caddywhompus. I read the name, heard the idea (experimental noise pop duo) and said to myself, "This can't be good". I cynically put on their album and prepared myself for disappointment. Instead, I was surprized by how tight the sound was. It took me a little while to get out of my funk. I started at... "hmmmm, not bad" and ended up somewhere around "hmmmm... pretty damn good!". There are elements of Battles and Animal Collective in here, but they never seem to imitate, just to emulate. It's smart, catchy, mathy and occasionally rocks the fuck out... LOUDLY. I couldn't expect much more out of a duo, let alone a full fledged band. If I were in a noise duo, I would hope to sound as tight as these two. I mean, as far as noise duos go, these guys are one of the best groups I've heard in a while. I really like saying "noise duo". NOISE DUO!!! As far as people who submit music for review on my blog go, these guys, along with the superbly good The Sleeping Sea, are the only ones to stand out from the crowd.

If you think your band has what it takes, or if you are willing to give out your album for free preview (which will put you ahead of the pack) then give me a at pfunnk14@gmail.com and I promise I will check it out. If it's any good, I'll post it! It would be even cooler if you also wanted to do a follow-up interview *hint hint*. Honestly... I would prefer it if my blog ran this way. I'm sick of getting flagged for posting mainstream albums, so the further I can get away from that culture, the better. Either way, check these guys out and let me know what you think.

Watch their Youtube music video for their song GUILT.

Interested? Then go download their album below. It's good. I promise.





Caddywhompus - Remainder


Now....get supportive of good indie music and go BUY their album HERE.
Also... go check out their other songs (which are also really great) on their myspace page.
These guys seem like they would kill it live, so go check them out when they come to a city near you. Tour dates are below.

May 20 Thousand Palms, CA The Oasis Bar
May 22 Santa Barbara, CA Biko Co-Op Garage Performance Space
May 27 Corvallis, OR Cloud 9
May 28 Portland, OR In Other Words (early show)
June 2 Boulder, CO Astroland
June 4 Austin, TX Mohawk
June 5 Houston, TX Free Press Summer Fest

And the confirmed shows in the East (more to come):
June 19 Lafayette, LA Artmosphere
June 23 Birmingham, AL Magic City Wholesale
June 24 Nashville, TN Little Hamilton
June 25 Carbondale, IL The Swamp
June 30 Madison, WI Project Lodge
July 1 Chicago, IL Ronny's
July 11 New York, NY Piano's
July 12 New York, NY Bruar Falls
July 19 DC Girl Cave
July 23 Atlanta, GA Wonder Root

The National - Terrible Love (live in some castle)

This song is killer live. I recomend checking out the Jimmy Fallon version too cause it's amazing as well, but this one takes place in a castle... which automatically makes everything better.

Sleigh Bells - Tell 'Em

Pretty cool new tune from upcoming Sleigh Bells album out on may 11. Think it's gonna be a pretty damn decent album based on what I've heard so far. Check it

oOoOO - No Summr4U

I've been holding onto this one for awhile. These guys share a similar penchant for mystery as their darker counterparts, Salem. I have no clue if these two bands are friends with each other... but they should be. If Salem is the dark, haunting, gothic side of the moon, then oOoOO are the light side... bombarded with glitter, sheen and little bit of crack. Another band that doesn't tell people who they are, print enough albums or play enough shows. *Sigh* I wonder if these guys will ever release a full length? Probably not.




No Summr4U

Take a Leak!

Awwww snap... when will the leaks end? NEVER! Speaking of... how good is LCD's new jam? SO, SO GOOD. Here is probably my most anticipated album of 2010, The National's "High Violet". I think I just peed a little. Let's hope it lives up to my secretions. Gross. Check it.





The National - High Violet *EDIT* LINK REMOVED AT REQUEST OF "WEB SHERIFF"

Take a Leak (with me)!

HOLY SHIT... This time on "Taking a Leak" I've got 2, count em, 2 fucking amazing leaks. First one is Broken Social Scene's new album, "Forgiveness Rock Record". Yikes... been waiting for this one for YEARS. Super psyched!!! (Can you tell?) And the other leak is LCD Soundsystem's new LP "This is Happening". OOOO EMMM GEE. I think I just had an indiegasm. I also think I just coined the term "indiegasm". I haven't listened to either yet, but I have high expectations for both. Like with all leaks, I wanna get it out there as soon as possible. Buy both when they come out though, cause I love both these bands.

P.S. Indiegasm™




This is Happening





Forgiveness Rock Record

Japanther x 2 (old and new)

Wazza in the hizzie? Japanther, your favorite skuzz/noise pop punk band, are BACK! I thought it would be weird and wild to see how older Japanther would compare with newer Japanther. One of my favorite older records (okay so not OLDER, but 5 years old) is Master of Pigeons. It's interesting to see how all over the place the production and songwriting is on their earlier releases compared to their more composed and focused newer releases. Arguably what makes them charming is their "who gives a shit" attitude which is most pronounced on their earlier releases. However, in their new releases, we at least see them trying to give a little cohesion to their album's sound. Their new album, Rock 'n Roll Ice Cream, is much better than most of the stuff they've done in the past 3-4 years. But honestly, every Japanther album has it's ups and downs. But that's their charm for me. If they made an album that "blew me away" they wouldn't be Japanther. Take a look at the company they keep.... fellow Brooklyn indie rappers Ninjasonik. They have this self referential, just fucking around quality to their sound as well... it wouldn't work otherwise. They aren't trying to be Jay-z and Japanther aren't trying to be Radiohead. They are just having fun, writing catchy fast paced songs with quirky/silly lyrics. Sometimes, you need to take a break from heady arty indie rock and Japanther are a nice escape. Check em both out, because... well ... both are good, stupid.




Master Of Pigeons





Rock 'N' Roll Ice Cream

R.I.P. Mark Linkous aka Sparklehorse

Sad day, man... one of my favorite artists of all time took his own life. Look on this blog here for his full catalogue of LPs. Also here is a link for his collab with Fennesz here. Sadly the last thing he will probably release isn't of his own work but another collab with Dangermouse called Dark Night of the Soul here (I also wrote about it here but the link is broken). Who knows though, he was supposedly working on a new album, so maybe we'll eventually hear a posthumous album just like we got with Elliot Smith. Either way, I hope his family and friends are doing well and that they know his genius will be greatly missed. His music changed my life, that is for sure.

Take a Leak! (with me)

I'm gonna start this new thang on here that's gonna be called "Take a Leak". Every once in a while when an album leaks and I'm interested in it enough... I'll post it! Also, it's a double entendre... like I'm taking a piss, but really I'm talking about music. Why can't I write for magazines again? Anyhow... This time, on "Take a Leak", we have Frightened Rabbit, with their new LP The Winter of Mixed Drinks. I discovered Frightened Rabbit's last album, Midnight Organ Flight, very close to the end of 08. What I didn't know was that it was actually one of my favorites of 08 even though it only made it into the "honorable mention" section. Just goes to show what a little time and a couple more listens can do to an album. Still the album suffered from a few insincere moments and corn ball lyrics. But unfortunately, the best parts of the last album take a back seat and the worst parts are more prominent on this release. Maybe it's because the singer is "happy" with his life (what a dick) and now he can't write his sardonic, rip the heart out of my chest, fuck the world lyrics that made his last release so much fun. That's not to say that the lyrics here are "happy", in fact quite the opposite. However, they DO feel more contrived this time around. All of that I could've lived with, but there is a lack of drive with the music. Sure it's not BAD, but it's a bit of a disappointment and a unfortunate departure from their last great effort. I guess we can only hope the singer gets his heart broken or has someone die that he really cares about or something. It's for the sake of your art, brah. (KIDDING). Who knows though... this is so new it could end up having the same effect on me as the last album. Check back with me in a month or two... I could be eating my words.



The Winter of Mixed Drinks

Just in case you don't have it yet

I was gonna post this like two weeks ago... but I was too busy listening to it. NON STOP. UNTIL RIGHT NOW. That's how long this thing is. Also, hyperbole is THE GREATEST THING IN THE WORLD. But yeah mang, this is GOOD. I mean, if you are into the idea of an epic of lyrical grandeur, this shit is right up your alley. Sometimes I feel like Newsom just uses music as a pedistal for her poetry. That's not saying that her music takes a backseat, like some spoken word jazz or something. But it's more about the build, the emotions that she transferes to the words to inflate their meaning to a greater realm. So, sit down. Grab the lyrics online. Put on some headphones. Clear out the rest of your day (seriously), and get ready to have your world rocked.




Have One on Me

HOLY YESSSSS!!!

I'm freaking excited! Can you tell? Let's get this out of the way. I am talking about Lali Puna, and their new album Our Inventions. If I mention this in the title, it would most surely be caught within an hour and deleted. Thankfully I'm more cunning than that... I think. I've been anticipating this album for awhile. Anything with a member of Notwist in it has my interest at the very least. But this is quite possible my favorite incarnation of Notwist members contributing with other people. *Go check out the rest of their catalogue on this blog if you haven't already, it's stupendous and in really high quality because I own all the CDs* I haven't really listened to this yet, besides a few tracks (I'm playing it right now). I wanted to get it out as soon as possible. So here you go, make up your own minds... but seriously, I can't help but love everything I hear so far. Maybe I'm blinded by the faith that they were gonna release another consistently good record again. There are some bands that I will always buy their album no matter what, because I trust in their talent. These guys are one of them... I just couldn't help myself with this though... I needed to hear it as soon as possible. It feels so good. Now if only LCD Soundsystem and Arcade Fire would leak... that would be TIIIIGHT.




Lali Puna - Our Inventions

Uh oh.

Blogger crackin down again

It's pretty silly because blogger will delete any blog with multiple complaints regardless if they are legitimate. For instance, with my Los Campesinos! post, they notified me once, I removed all the links and put (just a review) in the title. Then they notified me not once, but TWICE more, about the same post, even though there was nothing but a review posted. Make sense? Not to me. But now I fear my blog being deleted like crazy. Mostly because if my site gets deleted it's 2 years of writing down the shitter. Not to mention I can't tell people where to go to see more of me and my musical ramblings. End of blog, end of story. Well FUCK THAT. So just as a precautionary measure I registered iamzeitgeber.wordpress.com. So if this site dies a horrible death, go there and I will continue my debauchery over there. Once again, it's
iamzeitgeber.wordpress.com. Same name as here just on wordpress. Sweet.

Four Tet - There Is Love in You

Now, to say that I've been dying for a new LP from Kieran Hebden would be an understatement. After what was literally one of my favorite electronic albums of all time (Rounds...it's here on this blog by the way, go search for it... you won't be sorry), I couldn't wait to see what else this dude had in store. Well... he had a half-decent LP (Everything Ecstatic), an album Remixes and a decently satisfying EP. But after all that fluff...let's just say that he did not disappoint. There is something about Hebden's style that is untouchable. Atmosphere and tone take such a front seat to poppiness and immediate appeal. While this can be damaging to some albums, it actually works in his favor here. Instead of each track standing on it's own, the album because this mass of sonic intricacy, dependent on each song for a deeper understanding. Don't get me wrong... there is enough going on here to bring the tunes from background music to heady, thought provoking, cerebral mind fucks. Sure, it won't appeal to everyone... but for someone who has the patience to sit down and REALLY listen, there are virtually no equals to Hebden.




There Is Love in You