Vinyl Notes

Sometimes having a day job gets in the way of what we had going here. I don’t know how many people read or don’t read, all I know is that I have this music blog and it was one of the most important things in my life for a while…Writing about music in particular.

Then came along the day job–one I am grateful and blessed to have–and there seems to be no time any more.

But I still need someone to tell my thoughts about music, because it is so rare that I come across someone with whom I can actually have a conversation about music.

So I store up these thoughts and they build up and I lament never having posted them at all.

Well…I’m just going to dump it.

On Femme-Fronted Rock Radio Rotation: It really frustrates me that so few female voices make the radio. It does however bring me joy to hear Nico Vega’s “Gravity” on KROQ’s “Locals Only” broadcast. I guess if enough people request it, they’ll play it more, but it’s nice to hear them on the radio even a little.

Rock super group, Dead Weather–conceived by Jack White, fronted by Alison Mosshart–gets played on another local station, but they say “Jack White’s side project…” It makes sense, since Mosshart’s following pale’s in comparison to Jack’s; but would it heart to acknowledge the vocalist? I guess it must be like being the drummer…which is what Jack happens to be for Dead Weather.

On Lady Gaga: At first I wanted to hate her but she makes good pop music. What? She does! Doesn’t your body move despite you turning up your nose? Aren’t they silly and just burrow into your brain? Yeah, yeah, yeah her costumes are over the top, so what. The girl can sing, and she can put on a show. She’s entertaining and talented. That’s just about all I need right there. Mind you…I don’t like that “Love Game (Disco Stick)” song, but I just think the girl knows her audience on that one…aaaaaaand it wasn’t me. Her VMA performance may have been criticized as rough, but for a newcomer, I think she put on a fantastic show. She’s got room to grow, but if she doesn’t fall off in a few years, Gaga could well go through many transitions and be around for much longer than anyone expects.

On Kanye at the VMAs: That was shitty, but its Kanye’s shtick. He makes some douche-bag publicity stunt, people talk about boycotting and what an asshole he is. But notice, no one was talking about the embarrassment Tailor Swift suffered; which is good for Tailor Swift. The flip side of it not being all about Swift? It was all about Kanye. So he got what he wanted, people were talking about it, and there was buzz to support his latest project (which I won’t link, ‘cuz fuck that).

On the Cycle of Music: I watched practically every Fall premier this season (What? You can do that when you don’t watch live TV and you’re vegging out on a Sunday afternoon). It’s been kind of exciting to hear music I was writing about a year ago–up to two years ago even–being used in commercials, movie trailers and on prime time TV shows. The part of me that wants to love underground cringes when I hear The Kills’ “Cheap and Cheerful” in a promo for 90210 and Tilly and the Walls’ “Pot Kettle Black” in a Target promo for the new Anna Sui line, let’s face it though…these are good things for the bands. But seriously, a year for that level of exposure? Didn’t take long for the band with Jack White behind it though; they got in with the series premier of the CW’s Vampire Diaries. Some call it selling out, I call it smart business.

The 28th Annual Ragga Muffins Festival in Long Beach drew a smaller crowd – could be the economy, or not enough mainstream artists to draw the parade of hipsters, pretty people and meat-heads so prevalent three years ago. In keeping with the festival’s oft spoken of return to its roots, this year’s line-up was about uplifting your spirits, not just shaking your booty.

In our preview we touched on the contributions of Lee “Scratch” Perry and Tony Rebel. On Sunday we got a history lesson on Leroy Sibbles…given by Sibbles himself.  A legend by most standards, Sibbles is not attributed for his contributions to reggae (most notably his famed baseline popularized in “Pass the Dutchie”).

Well, we can give Sibbles credit for injecting the day with energy and establishing a collective desire for communion. As he repeated the refrain, “love is in air” we could see it was, as strangers danced together and refreshments were shared freely.

Sibbles set left the audience well primed for Pressure, a performer who may lack wrinkles but does not lack depth. It was obvious he enjoyed performing as much as the crowd was feeling him. When the crowd started singing his lyrics, Pressure couldn’t resist a smile and wink, reveling in their energy.

Great performances abounded, but this Bob Marley Day clearly belonged to Stephen Marley. The acoustic gig had an ethereal power, commanding the crowd’s attention from a seat in center stage. The crowd was enraptured and reverent, receiving his music like an offering. Festival goer Addison Alkire said it best, “this feels like church.” While Marley’s rendition of his father’s songs were true to form, his use of flute & sax imparted his own resonance.

At the end of the set Ziggy and Julian joined their brother onstage. The audience responded with exuberance, appreciative to have so many Marley’s back.

It wasn’t all roses though. Introduced as “the son of a legend”, it seemed the Marley name got Julian a better time slot than he merited. Tanya even speculated that dubious intro might be foreshadowing. The audience was not impressed with his lineage and zoned out after the second song, missing repetitive melodies and gratuitous face grabbing.

By contrast, up-and-comer E-Dee’s energetic exhibition would have benefited from better placement; his was the first set on Sunday. He delivered songs heavy on bass with danceable beats, but it was like trying to light a wet match. After the set E-Dee acknowledged his attempts to draw audience, saying “If you don’t get hype the audience won’t.”

Another notable, Etana, also had a lackluster response, though for entirely different reasons. She blamed inadequate time for failing to get her message across; we humbly submit our own hypothesis. The instrumentation overpowered her voice from the start. As time went the strain on her voice was evident, perhaps from the effort of singing over the music. Even so, we must bear witness, she sings with grace, free of superfluous vibrato. And onstage she is regal.

Onto non-musical details. There were fewer vendors this year, but that was not a bad thing. Gone were the mass produced Bob Marley onesies sold at a dozen booths. When asked about the improved quality of the cultural wares, festival organizer Barbara Barabino said, “I was tired of the crap too.” She went on to say that she prioritized vendor selection this year, personally inviting real artists to “bring it back.”

Despite lower attendance, the 28th Annual Ragga Muffins Festival was a success. Buju Banton, Saturday’s headliner, said he makes music “to uplift, educate and eradicate negativity from the minds of the people.” That charge may well be applied to the real purpose of reggae music. This weekend that promise was fulfilled.

America’s Got Talent (AGT) features dancers, singers, musicians, acrobats, magicians and other acts, all competing to will $1 million and the next big Las Vegas act. Last week the final five were revealed.

Neal E. Boyd may be an insurance salesman by day but by night he is a world class opera singer. He has enthralled the viewers since his first AGT performance after which he received a standing ovation.

Neal E. Boyd

Nuttin’ But Strings are two brothers from Queens, NY who want to bring the violin to the forefront of mainstream music. How you ask? With their genre bending combination of hip hop, rock and classical influences, they amazed the judges with a high energy performance that would make any kid think playing the violin. Piers Morgan, the toughest of the three judges, called Nuttin’ But Strings “fresh, exciting, original, super talented.”

Nuttin’ But Strings

Queen Emily had everyone – everyone following America’s Got Talent that is – comparing her to Aretha Franklin after her performance of “Chain of Fools.” Last week she sang “You’re Gonna Love Me” and wowed the judges with her phenomenal voice and larger than life stage presence. All her life she has been waiting for a moment like this to live out her dream and now, she’s in the top five. Proof that dreams do come true.

"Queen" Emily David

Donald Braswell was a professional singer and lost his voice after a freak accident. 11 years, three kids, relearning how to talk and almost being booed of the stage by the audience, Braswell is in the AGT top five. His rendition of Josh Groban’s “You Raise Me Up” was moving and took the crowd from wanting him to get the heck off of the stage to chanting their hope that he will be the winner: “Vegas! Vegas! Vegas!” Donald Braswell may be a veteran vocalist, but he is this competitions black horse.

Donald Braswell

Eli Mattson became an instant heart-throb with his emotive execution of “Walking In Memphs.” Judge Sharon Osborne expressed her surprise that this 26-year-old sing/songwriter had not been signed. Like all the others, America’s Got Talent is his chance for the big break he’s been working his whole life for. Even if he doesn’t win, he can’t lose.

Eli Mattson

To find out who wins or just to see more of the awe inspiring performances, check out America’s Got Talent Wednesdays 9/8 Central. The finale airs Oct. 1,  9/8 Central.

Lately I’ve been sort of inundating myself with music I’ve never heard, from artists I’ve never heard of. Recently I found out about a site called TheSixtyone (hat tip: Ontological Zombie on Newsvine), a site that allows artists to upload their own music for users to “bump” as it were.

Immediately I liked the look and feel of the site; easy to navigate and not too busy. You might think that you’ll only find the most obscure of underground groups, but after tinkering with the site for only an hour or so, I found new music from Arctic Monkeys and Death Cab for Cutie neither of which are indistinct.  

All you have to do is click the play button on any given song, and you get to stream the music on TheSixtyone to your heart’s content. If you want to “bump” or vote something up, you’ll have to register. Registration is not without its perks. Users are rewarded with influence points and experience levels for their skill and expertise bumping good music on TheSixtyone. When you level up, you gain access to locked features such as multiple bumps.

(more…)

The first of the month is blogtipping day, designated by my colleague Easton Ellsworth. Unfortunately, I was sick yesterday, so I tip blogs today. In case you’re wondering, blogtipping is when one blogger finds three others “giving them each three good compliments and a gentle tip." I’ve always liked the concept, so I’m going to do some music blog-tipping of my own today.

Stereogum

Quite possibly one of the top music blogs there are, always up to date with the latest business news; so much so that I can hardly keep up. But hey, that’s what feeds are for right?

(more…)

Just when I had all but given up hope that underground hip hop is still alive, I see a glimmer of hope.

The thing is this: underground music is about the culture of the music. It’s great that there’s such a prominent indie rock blogging community; I’ve discovered some great music that way. When digging around though, the best I could find on hip hop was Hip Hop Ruckus which respectable for sure but way too busy, too mainstream and too inarticulate for my taste.

And then I found out that Aceyalone, Dilated Peoples and Alchemist were slated to do a joint tour and then saw an article on the A.V. Club blog about free hip hop mixed tapes. Yay! Maybe it’s not prominent, but obviously there’s a bit of underground love out there in the blogosphere.

I leave you with the most Aceyalone’s latest single from his album entitled Lightning Strikes.

I already talked about the joy of a good mix and outlined some rules. Well, one of my favorite types of mixes is something to drive to. I like the music to be high energy, loud and rockin’. I've made several but this one is my favorite thus far. Here’s my most recent Drive mix, with videos included when possible.

A View From the Afternoon – Arctic Monkeys

(more…)

Everyone loves a good mix. For music lovers they become the soundtracks of our lives; there is a song for every moment.

Most of the time I just through together a semi-random selection of songs to fit my mood however, there is something special about a well thought out mix of music. Some aficionados even have mix-tape rules of engagement.  My friends at Listen In did a series on the steps to creating a good mix; all very scientific. Check it out:

Anybody can generate a smart playlist through iTunes or randomly pick songs and burn them to a CD. But every time you make a proper mix you are pulling disparate pieces together and making a whole that has never been before. You put a little bit of yourself into it and unless you were incredibly unoriginal in your song selection it's not likely that the exact collection of songs will ever exist again. Think about that as you assemble your tracks. Reflect on that as you hand off your creation. And the next time somebody hands you a carefully crafted mix, thank them appreciatively for gifting that bit of themselves to you.

As a result of this series I created my first strategic mix and it actually came out very well (if I do say so myself). I was not nearly as scientific about the process as some of my Listen In counterparts, but there were certain things I tried to adhere to.

(more…)

Some music moves you to dance, or takes you back to an emotional moment in time…And then there’s music that simply stirs the soul. It’s hard to define and hard to describe in words (although I will try) what exactly the music made you feel, but when you soul has been touched, you just know it. The great thing about Reggae is that often compels all of these emotions with pulse and rhythm like few other forms of music can do.

As you know, I am covering the Ragga Muffins Festival with Tanya Payne, my friend and writing partner, this weekend. Although Tanya is not writing this article with me, I just wanted to share something about a particularly surprising and interesting moment last night. I should probably mention that we only like to spend enough time in the press box to be on time to take pictures. We’re almost constantly on the move unless we are interviewing someone, or until we’re too tired to move anymore (which does happen). But our preference is to sit, listen, take notes and really experience the music.

I was really looking forward to seeing Anthony B, especially since the incident in 2005 when the Matisyaho fans came and left, leaving a very intimate crowd for Anthony B to entertain. His performance was phenomenal and I thought it a shame that more people hadn’t stayed to watch. This year was different…but I don’t want to talk about Anthony B right now. I want to talk about the group that went on after Anthony B: Sly & Robbie.

(more…)