Rihanna "Diamonds" SNL Performance

Rihanna's November 10th appearance on Saturday Night Live caused quite the furor in the recently blossoming subgenre of Seapunk for adopting it's cutting edge circa 1991 graphic animations. While those in the community are entitled to their anger (and really the punk rock community might have a few words for their usage of "punk"), RiRi's performance of "Diamonds" was the most engaging and creative on 'Snl' since Beck and his band went all Sesame Street in 2006. "Diamonds" is cute and simple pop song, haters be damned.

Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney- "Say Say Say"

Janis Joplin and Grace Slick

Live Through This

Courtney Love is a woman who is rightfully vilified in the canon of rock and roll folklore. The former Mrs. Kurt Cobain's career is portrayed broadly with images of heroin needles and smeared lipstick, as well as the downright abusive use of intellectual property rights she holds over her late husbands' band Nirvana that what can only be described as unwavering greed allows shit like this to go down. 90's revisionist theorists may never let the breath out of their lungs to utter the words, but the Love helmed  LA-based Hole was one of the better bands that came to prominence in the decade. Their 1994 second album Live Through This was the band's best output for merging the snotty "riot grrl" screed of their debut Pretty on the Inside and the trial-by- fire maturity and polish that would appear on 1998's landmark Celebrity Skin. Live Through This is by all accounts an ugly record. There's songs about alienation ("Violet", "Rock Star"), negative self introspection (Doll Parts), and graphic detailings of sexual assault ("Asking for it"). The beauty of the record lies in the second track "Miss World", which comes off as hopeful as it is dire. "I made my bed I'll live in it" sings a resigned Love. The album rode to multi-platinum on the strength of "Violet" and 'Doll Parts", as well as the growing facisination revolving around grunge's power couple. The debate of whether Cobain was the one who primarily penned the record haunts the legacy of Live Through This and ostensibly always will. However if it was anyone other than Love channeling their rage and frustration though their nicotine ravaged voice who is to say if the album would have been any more successful. History is not kind when looking back at the impact of Hole, which can be attibuted with the need to pair the person behind the music with the music itself. Let's take Courtney Love for what she was and is: A drug addicted career groupie who made great records.


Hole_Miss World

Refused-"New Noise"

The new beat!The new beat!The new beat!The new beat!The new beat!The new beat!The new Beat!

¡All-Time Quarterback!

Last Monday I saw Death Cab for Cutie live for the first time and despite being in the obnoxiously large Bank of America Pavilion it was one of the better shows I've been to in a while. Death Cab ran through the "hits" and to my surprise even a few songs that preceded 2003's landmark Transatlanticism (The playing of the LA-eviscerating "Why You'd Want to Live Here" was quite a surprise.) Watching Ben Gibbard alone on the piano in front of five thousand people playing the closer "Tranatlanticism" was a major testament to how far the band has come from being lo-fi gloom peddlers to arena filling headliners.

The origin of Death Cab stem from solo records Gibbard made under the moniker "¡All-Time Quarterback!" in 1999. Recording on a Casio tape recorder with a broken keyboard and an out of tune guitar, the sessions stack up against any of Gibbard's finer musical and lyrical moments. Like a low quality manifesto against suburban life and invisible scene politics, Gibbard uses wit and charm to detail the absurdity through the eyes of a world weary observer.

The Breeders-"Saints"

I'm in love with early 90's Kim Deal, down to earth with a beautiful smile.

Dom

Dom are a four piece stoner surf band from Worcester, Massachusetts who play the same brand of cat-centric and resin inhaling lo-fi as current scene king and queen Wavves and Best Coast. One glaring difference among the bands is that Dom are more unabashed in flaunting pop sensibilities. Their debut EP Sun Bronzed Greek Gods is a bright and energetic set of songs that doesn't take itself seriously, let alone anything else. Lead singer Dom has that "Is that dude or a chick?" kind of voice, which is even more difficult to distinguished through low fidelity (Completely intentional if you've heard their live shows). The EP is straightforward pop from end to end, so those looking for commentary on the plight of the human condition will be disappointed. With songs about remedying the pain of rejection with an ecstasy tablet at a basement party ("Jesus") and a single completely coated in sarcasm that will still probably go over the heads of red state residents ("Living in America"), Dom have that I don't give a flying fuck attitude and will spend their unemployment insurance on drugs. The highlights are the early Weezer inflected "Hunny" and the malt shop closer "I Wonder", songs about relationships that revolve around a couch.

Buzzcocks

Ever Fallen In Love With Someone (You Shouldn'tve Fallen In Love With)

Harmony in My Head

Lipstick

Nardwuar vs. Nirvana

Nardwuar the Human Serviette is known for his ambush interviews with celebrities and musicians that involve a deep retrospection into their early careers as well as any relation however vague they have to his native country of Canada. Some musicians like Pharrell from The Neptunes greatly appreciated Nardwaur's extensive research on their past and a couple of times the  keyboardist/media personality found himself in some rather tense and painfully awkward interviews.

Perhaps one the the most compelling interviews Nardwuar conducted was back in January 1994 where he snuck backstage into a Nirvana concert in Vancouver. At the time the Seattle grunge trio were coming off their third release In Utero and were one of the biggest bands in the world, which makes it rather surprising when Kurt Cobain and then wife Courtney Love casually chat with a fresh faced kid who inexplicably found a way in their dressing room with a camcorder.

Bassist Krist Novoselic creeps around in the background clearly altered by some type of chemical, and Kurt and Courtney humor Nardwuar while eating cheese pizza and causally wiping their hands on the tablecloth. After watching the videos I put any conspiracy theory of Courtney being the one to kill Kurt to rest. While she might not of been the best wife for a man struggling with the demons of drug additions, it's obvious that they were very much in love with each other. The videos are beautiful for showing a human side to an icon like Cobain who became so synonymous with suicide and incessant pain even when he was alive. A must watch for any fan of Nirvana and the history of modern music.

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart-Belong

Brookyn based shoegazers The Pains of Being Pure at Heart are releasing their second full length studio album Belong on March 29. The record, produced and mixed by former Smashing Pumpkins associates Flood and Alan Moulder is a throwback of sorts to the happier moments of the Pumpkins' back catalog. Belong is currently streaming on the band's official website until the release date, and below is a video of the title track "Belong."

Marsha Ambrosius-Late Nights and Early Mornings

Even though I somehow found myself to be a hip-hop/r&b writer over the past year, I cannot say that I am well versed in anything rhythm and blues. The concept of neo-soul is also foreign to me, and honestly I just view it as a subculture where girls grow out their hair into perfectly shaped afros and guys wear khakis and glasses that they do not need. When my knowledge of the genre barely extends to the Mcdonalds commercial featuring Dwele from a few years back, it's safe to say that any opinion I have is devoid from being educated.


But finally something has come along that is changing my perception of the "strangeness" of neo-soul. Marsha Ambrsious, formerly the songstress half of the British duo Floetry's debut album Late Nights and Early Mornings is incredible and I've been listening to it constantly ( Here's the album review and interview with Marsha from my more well versed fellow staff writers from Parle). Throughout the record Ambrosious sings with a voice that sounds racked with authentic pain and longing. Songs like "Far Away" and "Chasing Clouds" are refreshingly vulnerable outlooks on the downside of love.When she sings "I had to lose myself so I can love you better" on the Lauryn Hill cover "Lose Myself", the misery is all too palpable.


What I enjoy most about Late Nights and Early Mornings was Ambriosious willingness to take some risks. She tackles a cover of trip-hop royalty Portishead's "Sour Times" with the eeriness of the original intact, and even the most pop track in the record "I hope that she cheats on you (with a basketball player) benefits from an interesting concept. If liking this record means I'll be moving on to the nose ring and fedora hats of the neo-soul crowd, I apologize to the members of my immediate family in advance.



Far Away Mp3
Lose Myself (Lauryn Hill Cover) Mp3

Minks

Minks-Funeral Song
Minks-Aboretum Dogs

Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All

With a recent chaotic/shitstorming appearance of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, love from white bred hipster bloggers, and an invitation to one of the country's biggest festivals Coachella, west coast rap contingent Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All  is for lack of a better term, blowing the fuck up. With all members too young to even step foot legally in a alcohol serving establishment the group have amassed a cult following with macabre lyricism and schizophrenic production. Their leader 19 year old Tyler, The Creator is experiencing some success outside of the group with his disturbing video "Yonkers" off his upcoming album Goblin having well over 1 million hits on Youtube. The dark lyrical content of Odd Future is what mainly sets them apart from the peers in their age demographic who just discovered the word swagger in the English language. Rhymes about dismemberment and internal battles with religion are stark at first listen, but the structure and metaphorical utilization is refreshing in a currently staid rap scene.

Jimmy Fallon Performance February 16,2011





Tyler, The Creator-Yonkers

Letting Up Despite Great Faults

I've realized that the older I get the less I care about the details of a band I like. When I was younger I needed to delve into every minute facet of group members' personal lives, as if knowing where Ben Gibbard went to high school would make me appreciate Death Cab on a deeper level. Sometimes music is compelling enough to affect you without having names or faces attached to it. The extent of what I know about Letting Up Despite Great Faults (aside from the excessively lengthy name) is that they're a shoegaze-y band from Los Angeles. Their self-titled debut album is a gorgeous collection of songs about being young and optimistic, yet completely unsure of the future. It's sadness,resignation, and falling in love with someone new on a night on the town because you're youthful and fueled by drugs and alcohol. Songs like "Our Younger Noise" and "The Colors Aren't You or Me" are incredibly beautiful and manage to capture the misguided innocence of Generation ME.

In Steps
 

Our Younger Noise

The Colors Aren't You or Me

Tegan and Sara "On Directing" video

My favorite Canadian twin lesbians are still milking last year's Sainthood  with the third single "On Directing". As much love as I have for the sisters Quin, most of their videos are minimal and boring and "Directing" is not an exception. However I am digging the close ups of Sara who with any luck I will someday convert to being completely hereto. In other T&S news, a vinyl boxed set of all their albums was announced, complete with a bonus record of unreleased demos. At $99 bucks it might be worth further ruining my credit over.

Fans push for Lasers to be released

Viva la revolucion! Fans of hip-hop hero Lupe Fiasco hit the interwebs last week to urge Atlantic Records to release his latest effort Lasers. A statement on the website petitiononline by the cryptic moniker The Undersigned asks that Atlantic release the longtime shelved album and give it a proper street date. Ever the example of humility, Lupe told BBC's DJ SEMTEX “I feel great knowing that I have that kind of support. This is some straight, grassroots, Lupe Fiasco fans." I'm all for the cause, Lupe is one of the few truly phenomenal artists  and 2007's The Cool was a lifetime ago in industry standards. To it's credit Atlantic responded July 24 on Twitter saying the album will in fact be coming out, but naturally an exact date was not given. 

Mixtapes:
Enemy of the State: A Love Story
Before There Were Lasers

Wavves

Nathan Williams is the closest thing lo-fi has to a superstar. With his penchant for documented beefs and drug fueled onstage meltdowns , well informed members of the scene have formed an opinion (good or otherwise) on the distortion prodigy. The 24-year old, who for the sake of leaving out semantics is Wavves, caught an overwhelming amount of online buzz in 2008 before playing one note of a live set. His breakout second record Wavvves is essentially The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds after being thrown out of the window of a Willamsburg studio apartment. Gems like "So Bored" and "No Hope Kids" are noisy devotions to summertime and living just to occupy space and steal oxygen. I haven't gotten deep into King of the Beach but the lead single "Post Acid" is the main standout.

Wavves-Post Acid

Taking Heads- Stop Making Sense

David Bryne is dogshit crazy. The new wave,post-punk messiah rose to stardom by twisting conventions of the standard pop song with his band the Talking Heads. The Heads set dada surrealism to sound and briefly took over MTV back when music was their primary offering.Stop Making Sense, the 1984 concert documentary directed by Jonathan Demme was  filmed during a three day stretch in Hollywood shows the NYC visionaries at peak form. Bryne is backed by a full band including several singers,and dances with mannerisms that are yet to be classified in the DSM-IV. His artistic vision is omnipresent throughout Sense, every camera shot and physical movement by the band painstakingly deliberate.The film was released in select major U.S cities and received positive responses from critics.There are a few choice cuts on Youtube like "Psycho Killer" and "Life After Wartime", but judging by the trailer a full viewing is needed to fully appreciate the avant-garde experience (Come over and we can Netflix it up).

Talking Heads-Houses in Motion

The Radio Dept.

 Sweden does not have the best track record for musical exports (See here and here for substantial proof). Dream/shoe/twee-gazers The Radio Dept work diligently to change the manufactured dance pop perception of their homeland. The trio released their third album Clinging To a Scheme this past April, and it is a great record with expansive guitars and lush arrangements along with vocal samples thrown in for good measure. Scheme abandons the New Order-meets-My Bloody Valentine sound of their first records Pet Grief and Lesser Matters in favor of a happier version of Portishead style of trip-hop. The lead single "David" is a horn infused groove with an infectious piano melody. The bouncy "Heaven's on Fire" is such a genre-bender it was mashed up with R&B giant Trey Songz hit "Say Ahh" by The Hood Internet. All three of The Radio Dept records are worth a listen but Scheme is by far their most adventurous effort.

The Radio Dept.-"David"