Happy February everybody! We now proudly present the first Music News of 2010 (to say nothing of the history of AudioSuede).
I don’t do music festivals. I did Pitchfork 2.5 years in a row (the third year was just to see the almighty Slint perform Spiderland in its entirety and then get the hell out of dodge) but for the first two years I went free courtesy of my job at the local college radio station. But this year’s Sasquatch Festival at The Gorge Amphitheatre in Quincy, Washington (which is actually located in a gigantic awesome-looking gorge) might convince me to pony up some real dough to go see the legendary 90s slackers Pavement do their official reunion gig. They’re the only announced act so far besides psych-rockers Neon Indian, but the other kicker is that if you buy your 3-day pass before February 16th (admittedly, yes, without knowing the other 80-some artists that will be playing) then you only have to scrounge up $183 instead of $300. It’s taking place May 29th-31st and while it’s rumored Pavement will do a national reunion tour, there’s once again no assurance if/when/where that’ll happen, so we go on mulling over this torturous game of indie rock roulette.
-Chris Polley
PBS’s Independent Lens is currently featuring the documentary Copyright Criminals. Directed and produced by Benjamin Franzen, it delves into the world of the use of sampling in hip-hop. Artists featured in the film include Public Enemy, De La Soul, Eyedea and Abilities and Danger Mouse.
Before specific music copyright laws were put in place, sampling music in hip-hop was done without a blink of the eye. Then sampling was viewed as stealing and the hip-hop world was soon riddled with lawsuits and lawyers. Those issues still arise today from time to time, but back in the day it really caused some problems for artists who just thought they were building new ideas off old ones. The film mentions that a majority of the royalties from De La Soul’s highly successful album Three Feet High and Rising don’t even go to band since they never got the proper clearances for their samples. Visit Independent Lens’s website to see when Copyright Criminals is airing in your area.
-Felicia
Kings of Leon has launched their new clothing line called KOLxS2A. The line includes the usual rock and roll kit: flannel, jeans, boots, and, of course, a $340 guitar strap [ed. note: Holy sh*t]. The style of the clothing mimics what the KOL members usually wear on stage. The pricing of the line seems to be aimed at the young professional crowd rather than bohemian hipsters, with blue jeans priced at $220 and a flannel shirt priced at $180. According to the Los Angeles Times, the clothing will be available at Barney’s New York stores as well as various online boutique retailers. The questions remain whether KOL can successfully diversify their “portfolio of cool.” http://www.vogue.co.uk/news/daily/100107-kings-of-leons-fashion-collection-/gallery.aspx#“
-Daniel Wipert
For those of us Minnesotans lucky enough to be in attendance of The Current’s 5th year anniversary bash on Friday, we were treated to a few nice surprises (and quite a few questionable performances). Performances included local favorites Solid Gold, P.O.S., and Mason Jennings along with (Semisonic’s) Dan Wilson-led band Twilight Hours.
During the course of the night, local DJ Steve Seel informed the audience that a new Cloud Cult album was in the works and eyeing an August release date. Then all the fortunate attendees were given a sneak preview of a demo track that couldn’t even be played on the radio yet (!). I could have sworn the opening of the track was actually a sample of The Cure, but then Cloud Cult returned to their tried and true song structure of heavy drums, sing-a-long choruses, breakdowns, and more heavy drums. So pretty much what they’ve been doing for a decade. So take that for what it is.
Also during the night the mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul hopped on stage to make the official proclamation of the next week in the twin cities being “Current Week”. Pretty cool for a public radio station.
Also Prince was there but he hung back in the shadows and unfortunately didn’t hop on stage with Solid Gold to delight everyone with a version of his Vikings fight song…
This just in: The Grammys happened, and for the first time in several years, Album of the Year didn’t go to a washed-up singer! But it did go to Taylor Swift. So, yeah. It’s a wash. Beyonce won more awards than anyone else with 6. An old queen sang with a young transvestite, and things couldn’t have been more…okay, I’ll be honest, I didn’t bother with the Grammys. The Grammys are a corporate side show where all the awards are voted on by executives out to make as much money as humanly possible, ignoring fans and critics alike in favor of bullshit ratings-boosting, ass-kissing trash that reminds everyone who listens to music that yes, music does have the power to change the world, but only if you go platinum. Best New Artist went to the Zac Brown Band, who couldn’t be that great as I don’t know if I’ve ever heard of them. Best Alternative Album, usually the only sensible award given, went to Phoenix. Which would have been fine, except that they beat Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Grizzly Bear wasn’t nominated (nor Animal Collective, nor countless other deserving artists). Plus, Death Cab For Cutie was nominated for an EP, because Grammy voters’ knowledge of alternative rock music usually extends to the cover of Spin Magazine. Because, you know, Blender’s out of business.-Christian Hagen
For those of you who didn’t make the jump over from Pajiba or The Music Is The Message to read us: 1) Welcome! 2) Every week on the Music News posts, we’ll be presenting you with a playlist hand picked by our fine staff of songs we’ve been grooving to, tracks that have been on our minds, or bands we think you should hear ASAP. Here’s this week’s playlist:
Christian – I thought, as a nice way to showcase our shiny new site, it would be nice to highlight a shiny new band. Total Babe is a wonderful indie outfit from Minneapolis signed to Personal Best Records, a subsidiary of Afternoon Records run by one of Total Babe’s members, who is (oh yeah) only a teenager.
Felicia - I’m currently listening to Mike Snow’s 2009 self-titled album, gearing up for the show I have tickets for in April. Two of the three band members were the men behind Britney Spears’ Toxic, but this album strays away from bubble-gum pop. It ultimately is a pop album, but leans more towards electro-pop. The track “Silvia” is one of my favorites – I swear the Swedes really know how to make some great pop music. All hail Scandinavia!
Chris – “These Rivers Between Us” by Slow Six is everything I’ve wanted the Brooklyn neo-classical collective to be since I first started listening to them a couple years ago, but never thought they’d actually become. Usually known for their extensively drawn-out and contemplative ambient string compositions, this track has a backbone to it that is unparalleled in the band’s usually passive genre of choice. The Rhodes piano helps a lot in keeping the flow forceful yet relaxed, but so does every instrument, whether through high-pitched suspense or simmering percussive dynamite.
Cooper – As for a playlist song, I would like to hear “Walk in the Park” by Beach House. Since I have been jammin’ that so hard lately.
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