Posted by Lily Reisman on Jul. 30, 2009, at 2:16 pm
It was ridiculously hot. It took me 15 minutes to realize that my white wife beater would become my face towel for the day. It was loud. It was colorful. It was my first time at Vinoy Park. And finally, at the age of 24, it was my first time experiencing Warped Tour.
It’s been three years since I attended a music festival and as I walked through the ticket line into a field filled with tents, stages, beer stands and even a slip n’ slide, I instantly recalled why I love outdoor fests; passing through the gates meant entering a world of the unpredictable and the unexpected. I didn’t know what kind of crazies I’d come across (there were bound to be some amidst the 10,000 attendees), what kind of new music I’d hear, or how pleased I’d be with the bands I was there to support. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Web Editor on Jun. 29, 2009, at 11:00 am
by Denis Baldwin
This year’s Homemade Music Symposium played out over the weekend at the Ybor HCC campus, bringing together musicians, singer-songwriters, music industry professionals, entertainers, writers, photographers and most every other aspect of the music industry to discuss the state of music, the nature of creating and marketing musicians and give a taste of things to come.
Overall, the symposium was a great success. Saturday opened with “Poets of Popular Song, The Lyrics and Lyric Writers of the Great American Songbook,” featuring the piano work of Paul Wilborn and the 107-year-old Rosa Rio. After their performance, many of the attendees broke for the lunch while the rest of us sat at our tables and handed out free swag and met with people.
After repeatedly hearing this new disc hyped by The Mars Volta leader Omar Rodriguez-Lopez in recent interviews as their “acoustic record,” TMV fans might be a bit surprised when they finally get to hear Octahedron.
Acoustic guitars highlight only a couple of the tracks on the new album, primarily the single “Since We’ve Been Wrong,” the over-7-minute “With Twilight as My Guide,” and “Copernicus.” The rest of the songs feature as much of the bombastic guitar and keyboard-driven rock as their fans are used to.
A special five-on-the-floor shout-out goes to track 2, “Teflon,” where vocalist Cedric Bixler-Zavala wails, “Let the wheels burn/ Let the wheels burn/ Stack the tires to the neck/ With the body inside.”
What strikes me as particularly “acoustic” about Octahedron is the lack of dense, arpeggiated guitar overdubs that typically define the Volta’s sound. In fact, the only guitar “solo” is placed at the end of “Luciforms,” the last song on the record.
For what we assume will be a very limited time, Pitchfork is streaming the entire epic Guided By Voices documentary Watch Me Jumpstart on its site, for free.
The 1998 film tells the story of the unlikeliest of rock stars (featuring Dayton, Ohio born Robert Polllard, an ex-4th-grade teacher) who never actually became rockstars to the general public but still managed to spawn a new sub-genre of DIY music-making, from recording albums on cassettes to printing T-shirts and album covers in their garage.
You can watch the whole thing by following the link below the jump:
Ume (pronounced ooo-may) is a My Bloody Valentine/Sonic Youth-influenced rockin’ three-piece from Austin, Texas that is one of the more exciting bands I have heard in a while. Critics from all over are drooling over the beautifully brutal songs delivered by easy-on-the-eyes frontwoman Lauren Larson. Check it out:
Posted by Eric Snider on Mar. 17, 2009, at 9:04 am
Gonna be bendin’ an elbow, turnin’ a few up for St. Patty’s Day tonight? (Don’t drink the green beer, pleeeze.)
To get yourself in the proper mood, have a look at a couple of videos by THE BEST Irish rock band ever, the standard-bearer, a group not from Boston or Chicago, but Ahhr-land: The Pogues.
Where to begin? Last Thursday seems like so long ago, the start of a very long weekend of incredible music. With the Harvest Of Hope festival bringing bands by the boatload to Florida, many of them played shows throughout the state before and after the weekend. I (with my girlfriend and a few other friends) went to four shows in six days across the state. I did my best to document all of this with pictures and video; and even managed to score a short video interview with Bryce Dessner of The National. Read the rest of this entry »
U2 No Line on the Horizon
Interscope
Four years after “Vertigo” blasted from speakers and iPod commercials — can it really have been that long? — U2 continues to defy the odds. While the ranks of legendary rockers limp along with lame new offerings that suggest they’re all but tapped out (it wouldn’t be polite to name names … but Springsteen comes to mind), U2 unveils its 12th studio album, No Line on the Horizon, which is marked by nothing less than consistent excellence.
While No Line does not include a song quite as incendiary as “Vertigo,” nor quite as soaring as “City of Blinding Lights,” it is, track for track, a superior effort to 2004’s How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb.
The tunes take a bit longer to insinuate themselves, in part because U2 is even more infatuated this go-round with long and winding intros. And while sometimes I find myself just wanting them to get on with, there’s always a payoff at the end of the slow build, usually delivered by the Edge, be it with a wave of orchestral guitar textures, a punchy riff or a chord sequence in full chime.
Bono, 48, continues to progress as a vocalist, without showing any degradation of pitch or range. Sometimes it’s a surprising spike into falsetto, or a wordless cry (you can see his head thrown back), or a dialed-down foray into speak-sing, which sets apart the quiet, minimalist closer “Cedars of Lebanon.” Read the rest of this entry »
On February 18th, both the Chicago Tribune and Pitchfork ran stories that put a knife through the heart of the punk/indie world. Venerable Chicago label, Touch and Go Records would be closing it’s distribution wing and massively scaling back it’s own output. This decision, that I’m sure was made after all other options were exhausted, effects more than just T&G’s roster. They provided distribution for 23 other labels Read the rest of this entry »
New Jersey based Parlor Mob play what best can be described as a mashup of Janis Joplin, Led Zeppelin and Bon Jovi, without a hint of irony. They converted a few local skeptics with an absolutely frenetic live show. One attendee said, “I never listen to this kind of music, but these guys put on an amazing show.”
Speaking of frenetic live shows, Jacksonville’s B.L.O.R.R. (Bastard Love Child Of Rock ‘n Roll) managed to work a dozen young fans into a torn shirt, dancing tornado of hormones with their synth-driven set. Fearless Tampa Calling contributor Aly Carr managed to take a picture with their pants-less drummer.
Soulfound’s newest release, “Live at Zen Recording,” drops February 17 on all major online music retailers Worldwide. CDs will be handed out as promo by each of the participating bands and the Mohawk Bomb Records Street Team.
This five-song EP is the latest release from Florida’s Soulfound on Mohawk Bomb Records. The EP was recorded live at Zen Recording Studios in Pinellas Park, Florida in November 2008. The five tracks are from Soulfound’s last studio album, 2008’s “Is a Rock Band”. The tracklist is as follows:
1. You Only Get One
2. Occupation
3. King of the Sandbox
4. My Kind of Thing
5. Looking for Me
This is a raw snapshot of Soulfound doing what they do. No trickery, tracks or gimmicks here, just pure, unrefined rock music.
Soulfound has been touring the Florida circuit since 1999. Originally formed in Gainesville, Florida, this Clearwater four-piece prides themselves in their sing-along songs and strong live performances.
In a new, thorough interview with Pitchfork, Stephen Malkmus talks about his memories of albums past and about the possibility of a Pavement reunion.
SM: Well, I don’t think about it too much. It’s sort of an out-of-sight, out-of-mind type thing. It’s just standard question #10 on the interview circuit for Real Emotional Trash. It’s almost as if it’s a script. Most bands will tell you, make sure you like your press release, because everything is going to come off of that, and you know what’s coming. That’s part of the formula, so I usually just say “No, it’s not happening.” People say stuff about Pavement, and I say that I’m really honored and proud that a lot of people at the show are into Pavement, and there wouldn’t be as many people there, we wouldn’t have the dialogue, or play the same venues, frankly, if we were just a new band. So I’m happy about it. But I’m into the new thing.
Pitchfork: Do you think your bandmates in the Jicks ever feel weird about it?
SM: I think they’re used to it at this point. Maybe for Janet it was a new thing. She was in Sleater-Kinney, and that’s it own thing.
Pitchfork: Yeah, “When are Sleater-Kinney going to get back together again?
Mohawk Bomb Records, the award-winning, Clearwater-based independent record label, announces its release schedule for spring 2009.
Soulfound “Live at Zen Recording”: features 5 songs performed live at Zen Recording from their “Is a Rock Band” album, released in September 2008. There are 5 video companions to the songs available on Soulfound’s YouTube channel. The EP will be available as a digital release on February 17, 2009.
No Lip Vol. 2 Compilation: This 14-song eclectic mixed bag of Rock music anthems is the second release in Mohawk Bomb’s No Lip series. Although leaning towards Punk and Pop Rock, No Lip pulls samples from the Florida, California, Texas, Ontario (Canada), UK and Australian music scenes as a survey course of the caliber of independent music. Profiles on each of the contributing bands will be posted on the label’s Website at www.mohawkbomb.com over the next month. The compilation will be available for sale online after February 24, 2009. Physical CDs will be passed out as free giveaways and sent to music press around the USA.
Mohawk Bomb Records is a new kind of record label, focused on sharing all music with the World using social networking and Web 2.0 technologies.
The annual New Granada Christmas Show at New World Brewery featuring King of Spain, Davey von Bohlen, Hankshaw and Jarvik 7 was a splendid night of reunions with a grand soundtrack. The show has a reputation for unique elements (including in past years the reunions of Scrog, Pohgoh and appearances by elusive bands like The Blackwoods Orchestra) and it’s a place to meet up with friends from near and far.
It was ridiculously hot. It took me 15 minutes to realize that my white wife beater would become my face towel for the day. It was loud. It was colorful. It was my first time at Vinoy Park. And finally, at the age of 24, it was my first time experiencing Warped Tour.
In a new, thorough interview with Pitchfork, 
