KCRW WELCOMES CHROMEO

Chromeo has a new record coming out and the boys stopped off in Hollywood over the weekend to give us a taste. Not only did they play a huge show at the Hollywood Bowl on Sunday, but they also hit up the studios at KCRW for Morning Becomes Eclectic.

I freaking love these sessions on KCRW! It's such a cool way to get a little behind the scenes vibe of the band.

If you missed it, check it out now!

I CAN FEEL YOUR HALO

A few weeks ago, I had the chance to see Harper Blynn live at the Tractor Tavern in Seattle. Here's a little clip of their rendition of Beyonce's "Halo." It's truly one of the best versions I've heard in a long time. A longer clip coming soon, as well as my interview with Pete from HB. Check back soon!

NEW SUFJAN STEVENS

Sufjan Stevens is set to release The Age of Adz, his first full length collection of original songs in five years, October 12 on Asthmatic Kitty Records. The album is available for pre-order now until September 25, with pre-orders receiving music digitally two weeks prior to the physical release date. The Age of Adz comes on the heels of Stevens’ All Delighted People EP, available for purchase now from most digital stores, and his 2009 film and musical suite The BQE. Stevens is planning a North American tour of large, elegant venues—including two nights at New York’s fabled Beacon Theatre and The Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles—in support of the new record. With a dozen dates already sold out, Stevens will tour with his large ensemble performing alongside projections. See tour dates below. To pre-order album and for additional ticket information, go to www.asthmatickitty.com/sufjan-2010.

The Age of Adz (pronounced “odds”) differs from Stevens’ previous works in its lack of conceptual underpinnings. The album relinquishes the songwriter’s former story-telling techniques for more basic proclamations unhindered by concepts: there are few narrative conceits or character sketches, no historical panoramas, no civic gestures, no scene, setting, conflict, resolution or denouement. Rather, the themes developed here are neither historical nor polemical, but rather personal and primal: love, sex, death, disease, illness, anxiety and suicide all figure in the songwriting.

The title The Age of Adz is a reference to the apocalyptic art of Royal Robertson (1930—1997), a Louisiana-based sign-maker (and self-proclaimed prophet) who suffered from schizophrenia. Robertson’s work depicts his vivid dreams and visions of space aliens, futuristic automobiles, eccentric monsters and signs of the Last Judgment. Portions of Stevens’ album use Robertson’s work as an idealistic springboard and a selection of Robertson’s drawings (his primary media were poster board, magic marker, and glitter) appear throughout the album art.

Sufjan Stevens has released nine studio recordings since 2000 including the critically acclaimed Michigan and Illinois (the latter named the “Best Album of the Decade” by Paste); a 5-EP Christmas box set; Enjoy Your Rabbit, an instrumental electronic song cycle based on the animals of the Chinese Zodiac; and The BQE, a film and musical suite exploring New York City’s infamous Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. Run Rabbit Run, a recording of Enjoy Your Rabbit rearranged for the Osso String Quartet, was released in 2009 via Asthmatic Kitty.

Sufjan Stevens, The Age of Adz
1. Futile Devices - 2:11
2. Too Much - 6:44
3. Age of Adz - 8:00
4. I Walked - 5:01
5. Now That I'm Older - 4:56
6. Get Real Get Right - 5:10
7. Bad Communication - 2:24
8. Vesuvius - 5:26
9. All for Myself - 2:55
10. I Want To Be Well - 6:27
11. Impossible Soul - 25:35



SUFJAN STEVENS - TOUR


October 12 Metropolis Theater Montreal, QC
October 13 Massey Hall Toronto, ON
October 14 Royal Oak Music Theater (SOLD OUT) Royal Oak, MI
October 15 Chicago Theater (SOLD OUT) Chicago, IL
October 16 Orpheum Theater Minneapolis, MN
October 17 Uptown Theater Kansas City, MO
October 19 The Long Center for the Performing Arts Austin, TX
October 20 McFarlin Memorial Auditorium Dallas, TX
October 22 Mesa Arts Center-Ikeda Theater Mesa, AZ
October 23 The Wiltern (SOLD OUT) Los Angeles, CA
October 24 The Wiltern (SOLD OUT) Los Angeles, CA
October 25 The Paramount Theater Oakland, CA
October 26 The Paramount Theater (SOLD OUT) Oakland, CA
October 28 Orpheum Theater (SOLD OUT) Vancouver, BC
October 29 Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall Portland, OR
October 30 The Paramount Theatre Seattle, WA
November 1 Kingsbury Hall Salt Lake City, UT
November 2 Paramount Theatre Denver, CO
November 4 Hilbert Circle Theatre Indianapolis, IN
November 5 Bijou Theater (SOLD OUT) Knoxville, TN
November 6 The Tabernacle (SOLD OUT) Atlanta, GA
November 7 Thomas Wolfe Auditorium Asheville, NC
November 9 The National Richmond, VA
November 10 Kimmel Center Philadelphia, PA
November 11 Orpheum Theatre (SOLD OUT) Boston, MA
November 12 Orpheum Theatre Boston, MA
November 14 Beacon Theatre (SOLD OUT) New York, NY
November 15 Beacon Theatre (SOLD OUT) New York, NY

HARPER BLYNN LIVE AT THE TROUBADOUR

My friend Cassandra and my trip to the Troubador to see Harper Blynn, started out as a frenzied panic when we realized that public transportation was going to take an hour longer than anticipated. Two an a half hours later we walked into the Troubador half-way through Harper Blynn's opener [fill in band name, I can't remember].  Since we both were starved, we grabbed some humus from the back (fantastic by the way) and munched away happily.  By the time Harper Blynn finished their sound check, the audience had doubled and were ready for the show.  I felt hesitant for the band to take the stage; In checking out Harper Blynn I was a little disappointed with what I heard on their MySpace page. But though I was doubtful, the audience was ready and excited.  And it was for good reason because by the time Harper Blynn's lights came up and the first chords sounded I knew that we were all in for a treat.  

The band features two talented front-men, complex vocal harmonies, and vocals from all members; they kept their audience entertained, engaged and dancing.  Harper Blynn's sound is in general an upbeat folk-garage band crossover, but they broke it up with powerful song reminscent of Mumford and Sons quiet, but building dramatics.  "The Loneliest Generation", their favorite song of mine, blew me away live. The passion I felt was missing from the recording surged through the space.  The concert's highlight was introduced by Pete as a song "for all you planning on getting laid and making love tonight."  Their rendition of Beyonce's 'Halo' grabbed the audience's attention, left no one with out a toe tapping, and may have surpassed the diva's version in my mind.  Sorry Sasha Fierce.  All in all, withhold judgement of this band till you see them live.

Blynn shows clear passion for their music- both the melodies and the lyrics- and the audience feels that passion.  Harper Blynn knows how to put on a show.

STORY: KATIE BUNTSMA

PHOTOS: KATIE BUNTSMA

IT'S FRIDAY. TIME TO DANCE!

Check out this demo from new UK band The Vaccines!

01 If You Wanna - The Vaccines by musicbleep

ROAD TRIPPIN' WITH THE ICE CREAM MAN

Not wanting to go quietly, Ice Cream Man throws a free dance party at Delores Park in San Francisco with local supergroup Still Flyin, free ice cream & people getting down. Never forgetting his roots, he then heads to where it all began, Ashland, Oregon to host the 7th Annual Ice Cream Social, a big gathering to say thank you to the town for the inspiring him to start “Slingin’ the Cream, Livin’ the Dream” and also to tend to his mouth full of pearly whites, as so loved he is in Ashland that this is where he returns year after year for his free dental care. Thank you Ashland for keeping Ice Cream Man’s toothy grin shiny and white! Langhorne Slim does a beautiful rendition of “Back to the Wild” fitting for Ice Cream Man’s hike in the hills.

Catch more episodes of Road Trippin’ with Ice Cream Man here: www.babelgum.com/icecreamman

IT'S FRIDAY...F**K YOU!

Cee Lo Green’s “F**k You” – co-written and produced by the multi-platinum certified production trio, The Smeezingtons, featuring Green’s Elektra labelmate, Bruno Mars – is officially for sale on www.ceelogreen.comand can be purchased individually or in a bundle, which includes an exclusive Cee Lo Green “F**k You” t-shirt. The digital single will be available at all digital retailers on Friday, August 27^th, and a CD single will be available exclusively at Independent record stores on September 21^st. An amended version of the single, entitled “Forget You,” will follow later in the fall, and companion videos for both versions are currently in production, with “F**k You” due to premiere next week.  In the meantime, the original “F**k You” clip can be seen and heard atwww.youtube.com/user/CeeLoGreen.

F**k You - $1.29
Buy Now

F**k You Pack: $20.00
Buy Now

THE HUNDRED IN THE HANDS ANNOUNCE FALL TOUR WITH THE TEMPER TRAP

As i mentioned, The Hundred in the Hands are launching a big national tour soon, just before they release their debut LP on Sept 21.  Both The Hundred in the Hands and the Temper trap are amazing live, so this is going to be a fantastic tour!  Check out all the details below!  You can also listen to a new remix of their single “Pigeons” by Kwes.

Brooklyn’s The Hundred in the Hands will join Temper Trap on a national tour this fall in anticipation of their debut full-length, which comes out September 21 on Warp Records. The tour begins September 26 in Philadelphia and includes stops in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, Detroit and San Francisco. (Please see below for a complete list of tour dates.)

THITH is releasing a new remix for the first single off the forthcoming album, “Pigeons,” the music video for which became a viral hit upon its release a few weeks ago. The new version “Pigeons (Kwes._[O=O]. Rework)” is available for streaming here: http://soundcloud.com/thehundredinthehands/pigeons-kwes-rework

Here the massive “Pigeons” gets remixed by Kwes, who might just be London’s best-kept secret. From producing The xx and Micachu to reworking Damon Albarn and Hot Chip, as well as creating his own mini-epics, he is bending the rules of pop music to fit his singular vision. For “Pigeons” Kwes accentuates the song’s melancholia and flips it into a baroque, heartbroken electronic ballad.

The Hundred in the Hands LP is an album of deceptively complex pop songs which hark back to the dance music of NYC’s storied underground. Where their recent This Desert EP feels like a summertime pop dream, THITH’s forthcoming album conjures the spirit of downtown’s mutant disco scene as made legendary by clubs like the Paradise Garage. It’s a product of DIY home-recording plus a series of studio sessions in London and New York with contributions by producer friends including Jacques Renault, Richard X, Eric Broucek and Chris Zane.

With a brassy carnality, the record veers from disco dazed, avant-pop (“Young Aren’t Young”) to teenage angst, boredom and pop heartache (“Pigeons”) as Jason Friedman’s piercing guitar lines cross paths with Eleanore Everdell’s soaring harmonies and Siouxsie-esque yelps. A late-night dance party (“Commotion”) and post-R&B dub (“This Day Is Made,” “Lovesick (Once Again)”) spin into mash-ups of skuzzy rock riffs and obliterated beats (“Gold Blood”), until they are relieved in an austere anti-ballad to failed rebellion (“The Beach”). Elsewhere, glistening, conversational minimal wave (“Killing It”) bleeds into dreamy synth-pop (“Dead Ending”), crumbles into restrained punk (“Last City”) and bursts in the song that started it all—the incisive disco-punk dance-off, “Dressed in Dresden.”

The Hundred in the Hands is Eleanore Everdell and Jason Friedman. The two live in Brooklyn and discovered their shared sensibility for early hip hop, French house and disco, ska and dub, post-punk, British invasion-mod and girl pop from the 60’s through the 80’s and decided to form a band. Their first song—the post-punk rave-up “Dressed in Dresden”—was written and recorded in a couple of days, released online, picked up and released as a 45 by a record shop in the U.K. where they were soon playing shows and coming to the attention of Warp Records. Meanwhile, the two retreated to the bunker to write and record. During that time, Friedman and Everdell focused on deciding exactly who they wanted to be. What they discovered and emerged with were 11 startling new tracks and a precise and deliberate sound.

The Hundred in the Hands Tour Dates
(all dates with Temper Trap unless otherwise noted)


September 12* Washington, D.C. Rock N’ Roll Hotel
September 24# New York, NY Coco 66
September 26 Philadelphia, PA Trocadero
September 29 Boston, MA House of Blues
September 30 Montclair, NJ Wellmont Theater
October 1 New York, NY Terminal 5
October 2 Montreal, QC Le National
October 3 Ottawa, ON Capital Music Hall
October 5 Toronto, ON Phoenix Concert Theater
October 6 Rochester, NY Water Street Music Hall
October 7 Columbus, OH Newport Music Hall
October 8† Cleveland, OH Beachland Ballroom
October 9# Cincinnati, OH MOTR Pub
October 11 Detroit, MI St. Andrews Hall
October 12 Chicago, IL Metro
October 13 Milwaukee, WI Turner Hall
October 14 Minneapolis, MN First Avenue
October 21# San Francisco, CA Popscene
October 22 Pomona, CA The Fox Theater
October 23 Los Angeles, CA Club Nokia

*—with Bear in Heaven
#—Headlining show
†—with The Thermals, Cymbals Eat Guitars




The Hundred In The Hands - Pigeons (Kwes._[o=o]. Rework) by thehundredinthehands

EMPIRE OF THE SUN LIVE AT THE MUSICBOX

As the chartered busses from the So-Cal beach towns turned onto Hollywood Boulevard and unloaded it's passengers at theMusic Box Theater on August 11th, one thing became clear: this would be no ordinary concert. Fans adorned themselves in feathers, face paint and headdresses that would make West Hollywood's gay pride look like a small town craft fair. No this was not a concert in the truest sense of the word. This night was about the spectacle. Appropriately situated in the land of smoke and mirrors, naturally all 4 nights were sold out shows. This was the medieval times of pre-recorded track concerts.  I'm talking dance beats you eat right off the bone, chalices filled with overcompensation, and full-time dancers that definitely have to rehearse their moves 40 hours a week. They danced with new lady-gagaesque constumes in nearly every song.

If I were sipping the pre-show kool-aid I might have really gotten into my visit to the scientology planetarium. If EOTS were billed as a cirque type show I would have expected and enjoyed it for what it claimed to be. However this "pop/electroacoustic/alternative" band left me wondering what their interpretation is of a live concert. The over developed and frenzied wall of sound and the Stephen Speilberg-esque sound effects were nothing but a distraction from how watered down the music became.  The high points were "Standing on the Shore" and "Walking on a Dream" which definitely kept the crowd moving.  For a brief moment, I thought  the show might make a turn for the better but then Luke Steel (of The Sleepy Jackson) situated himself in a wheel chair, threw a massive pocket watch a la flavor flave around his neck and wheeled his way across stage while singing.  I thought I could cite David Bowie as a possible influence, but after that fiasco I might liken EOTS more to a cross between a modern day Milli Vanilli for music and Prince for visuals.


The glaring contradiction to all of this is that the album is well-crafted and their 80's image is supported nicely in the material. I may be getting greedy here, but with a live show I'm not just paying for the lights, costumes and dancers. I want all of that yes,  but I want to see my musicians play music. I want to hear their voices (we can only blame the sound guy so much for this).  Finally let's not overlook the obvious: if you can play your live show without 50 percent of your contributing band mates (Nick Littlemore of Pnau was nowhere to be found) clearly music is not the first priority.  I don't doubt the talent of the contributing musicians. In theory this would be an amazing show, but in practice it felt like a bad acid trip.

PHOTOS: MATTHEW SCHAEFER
STORY: MATTHEW SCHAEFER

WORLD PREMIERE VIDEO - MGMT

"CONGRATULATIONS" is the new video from MGMT. Thoughts? Like the song! Video...not so much! You decide, check it out!