90′s Alternative Rock Revival: Yuck

Posted on May 12, 2012 | Leave a comment

Reverb revelers rejoice. Yuck, a quartet from London, England, perfectly encapsulates the distinct sound of 90’s alternative rock. Personally, their tracks help me dust off the now-faint memories of the music I grew up listening to. While Yuck (Fat Possum Records) is certainly an original band with their own sound, nostalgia immediately makes me think of Dinosaur Jr., Sonic Youth, and all of those other forgotten, reverb-happy bands that fueled college radio in the ninth decade of our 20th century. Yuck is a great way to sonically reminisce about the musical roots that were the foundation of my youth.

Their newest song “Chew” is catchy as hell and really is a gem. On the other hand, the next track “Rubber” takes the slow road, subtley washing over you until it ends in a frenzy of distortion that makes me want to start slow headbanging. Oh, and we have “Get Away”, which is a tasty track as well. Bon Appetit!

Yuck Facebook

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Yuck @ Fat Possum Records

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Posted in Indie

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Father John Misty – Fear Fun

Posted on May 8, 2012 | Leave a comment

I really don’t like Bluegrass/Pop Country music, but I do dig the influence that country music, and it’s cousin Folk music has had on contemporary rock music. Father John Misty is the perfect example: it is the winning recipe for the musical tastes of a man such as myself. Father John Misty (SubPop) is ex-Fleet Foxes drummer Josh Tillman, and I really believe that his new album Fear Fun could be an instant classic. The track “Writing a Novel” is the first single of the record and it’s goooood, but I also really like the slow twang of “Misty’s Nightmare’s 1 & 2”. Regardless, the whole album is superbly solid, so check it!

 

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Posted in Rock

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Logic – Young Sinatra: Undeniable

Posted on May 1, 2012 | Leave a comment

OH YEA! Maryland’s prodigal son has donned his heavy weight gloves and just knocked his newest mixtape OUT COLD! Logic just dropped his newest masterpiece of mixtapeology and it’s hot fire. Please, sit down, grab headphones, crank the bass, and melt away. This is the mixtape that will make him world famous, if his previous mixtape, Young Sinatra, didn’t. And word on the street is that he just signed with Def Jam. You heard it here first!

My favorite tunes off this tape have to be Dead Presidents III, Young Sinatra III, and Dear God because it is so heartfelt it gives me chills. Download the mixtape here for free!

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Posted in Hip Hop & Rap

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Kendrick Lamar – The Recipe ft. Dr. Dre

Posted on April 27, 2012 | Leave a comment

Kendrick Lamar has been steadily releasing Grade A certified tracks, slowly building up his repertoire under the Aftermath Label. There is no doubt that Lamar’s residency under the tutelage of a certain perfectionist Doctor has transformed the Compton native from a once up-and-comer to a now established presence in Hip-Hop. An apple a day keeps the Doctor away, and boy has Dr. Andre Young, aka Dr. Dre, been away for a while. And while we’re on the subject of clichés, you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone. While people have been waiting for 11 years for Dre to drop a new album, personally I’m ecstatic that he has been altruistically dispensing his sagely wisdom to a new protégé. It certainly seems like Kendrick has been taking notes. After the release of his two gastronomically inclined singles, entitled “Cartoon & Cereal” and “The Recipe”, there is no doubt in my mind (and also in Kendrick’s mind) that his next album will be The Truth (with a capital T, Boom!). KD’s ability to accelerate, decelerate, and generally vary his his flow over the beat of the song is as impressive as it is unique; while there are other artists that also possess this ability, Lamar achieves it with a one-of-a-kind style that will undoubtedly make him a force for any rapper/auctioneer to contend with.

Kendrick Lamar – The Recipe ft. Dr. Dre

 

Kendrick Lamar – Cartoon & Cereal

 

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Posted in Hip Hop & Rap

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A Little Appetizer for Summer: Diafrix – “Running It”

Posted on April 25, 2012 | Leave a comment

While I usually eschew poppy sounding songs, I’ve got to say that Diafrix’s new single “Running It” is the perfect appetizer for the Spring to Summer transition. Diafrix is a duo hailing from Melbourne, Australia and their backgrounds as refugees (hailing form the Comoros Islands and Eritrea, respectively) sow a certain world consciousness into their sound and lyrics. Their song “Concrete Jungle”, the progeny of the album of the same name, champions the plight of displaced refugees over a funky guitar riff and a boom bap bassline.  There are too many rappers out there flossing about how much money they spend, so it’s refreshing to see that there still exists Hip-Hop with a purpose.  Compare a song about a G6 Jet, swag, [insert inane, frivolously over-priced gold-plated monstrosity wore around your neck] versus rapping about how everyone deserves to eat, or wear a pair of shoes. The latter is a bit more soul soothing, wouldn’t you say?

Their newest song “Running It” doesn’t necessary embody this purpose explicitly, but it is certainly is a positive and uplifting song that I could totally see smashing the pop charts this summer. “Running It” exchanges Diafrix’s more Hip-Hop influenced music for a drum’n’bass beat, some simple guitar work, and some nicely harmonized melodies. This song is infectious, so beware, you might just not be able to get it out of your head.

Diafrix – Running It

via Chrome Music

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Posted in Electronica

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St. Paddy’s Day Special: Ween – The Blarney Stone

Posted on March 17, 2012 | Leave a comment

(The above photo is from Oktoberfest, but it’s a sweet photo so I couldn’t resist)

You’ve got to give it up to Ween for being one of the most eclectic bands out there; their piece-de-resistance of genre diversification has to be their nautical themed album “The Mollusk” that debuted in 1997. The previous year, 1996, saw their release of a country album for pete’s sake, entitled “12 Great Country Greats”. The sheer spectrum of musical experimentation that they’ve accomplished is mind-boggling, but it’s even crazier that they actually sound good doing it. Since it’s St. Paddy’s Day I’ve got to put up their song “The Blarney Stone”, and I can only hope that I will be roaring this song whilst spilling a tankard of ale at Au Poitin Stil tonight.

Ween – The Blarney Stone

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Posted in Rock

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Hip Hop Twist for Deadmau5: Failbait featuring Cypress Hill

Posted on March 16, 2012 | Leave a comment

Who would have thought that Deadmau5 would unite with Cypress Hill to make a rap song? Apparently this track was made a year ago, but Deadmau5 didn’t know how to release it, so he gave us all a little gift and put it up on SoundCloud. I personally think it’s great that the Mau5 branched out and dabbled in some musical experimentation. Also being a fan of rap pioneers Cypress Hill, I approve of the collaboration. I think it sounds great and it’s a great combination of new school beats and old school OG MC’s.

via Avenge the Virgins

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Posted in Hip Hop & Rap

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Noosa – Fear of Love

Posted on March 15, 2012 | 1 Comment

“Fear of Love” is the first single off of New York based Noosa’s EP that is coming out Spring 2012. But it’s March and today the mercury hit 80 degrees Farhenheit, so who knows when Spring is anyways.

Noosa is synth saturated dreampop, a wavy meshwork of keyboards, handclaps, and some expansively beautiful female vocals. Close your eyes and imagine you were dreaming. You are driving down a main city boulevard at night, with the neon lights of urban seediness shimmering as they dart by, searing an impression of light on your silver salt coated retinas. It could be a night out, or it could be a night of preoccupation. “Fear of Love” is the song that you will be listening to, and when you wake up, the afterglow of its synths will still be reverberating in your ears.

via Middle Class White Noise

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Posted in Electronica

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PrototypeRaptor – Drive Hard

Posted on March 3, 2012 | Leave a comment

Well, the song probably isn’t a reference to the 650-hp Saleen S5S Raptor concept car, but who wouldn’t mind driving that car hard, blasting PrototypeRaptor’s new song “Drive Hard”? The first adjective that comes to mind when I listen to “Drive Hard” is chunky. But a good kind of chunky, perhaps peanut butter style. It almost reminds me of a harder techno version of a Ronald Jenkees tune; there is certainly no doubt that PrototypeRaptor has the same keyboard mastery that Jenkees is famous for. Great track for any party and hopefully it gets your Friday night going!

PrototypeRaptor – Drive Hard

via Et Musique Pour Tous

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Heartless Bastards @ Ottobar 2/27/12, Baltimore

Posted on March 1, 2012 | Leave a comment

I had the privilege of seeing the Austin, Texas-based Heartless Bastards on February 27th at Ottobar with two great friends, and I haven’t been that blown away with a singer’s voice in a looong time. I was lucky that Ottobar is an intimate venue since it was a Monday, but the crowd ended up getting into it, which always makes everything better.

When a song is etched into the vessel that carries it, whether that be a CD, Vinyl, or whatever, many times it ends up sounding a lot better recorded than it does live. On the other hand, there are many bands that sound way better live and Heartless Bastards is one of them. Lead singer Erika Wennerstrom has some golden vocal chords, and while she can certainly belt out a chorus or five, she uses her voice in a subtle, yet extraordinarily powerful way. It becomes immediately apparent when you see someone with raw talent perform and Mrs. Wennerstrom & Band are practically overflowing with it. My favorite song of the night was “The Mountain”, which was the title track off their previous (3rd) album. It has this down and dirty blues sound, which is complemented by the lonesome sounding steel guitar; that particular song encompasses everything great about dirty southern rock. Another gem is “Only For You”, which is off of their latest album entitled “Arrow”. It’s a bit country, which is normally something I don’t like, but it really works in this case. If you every get a chance to see HB live, do it!

Heartless Bastards -The Mountain

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Posted in Rock

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