Posted by Leilani Polk on Jun. 30, 2009, at 1:26 pm
It used to be that MTV would overplay videos to such a degree that it was impossible not to know the latest singles by Madonna, or Prince, or Michael Jackson (may he RIP). Those artists blew wads of cash to make miniature movies for their songs. (Michael and sister Janet’s 1995 acclaimed video duet, “Scream,” cost $7 million alone to produce.)
Nowadays, MTV doesn’t play videos so much as it airs clips of them during the closing credits of its neverending reality TV programming, so many artists have turned to YouTube to get the vids out and are likely alot more budget conscious when making them. The results vary from fun and inspired to downright garbage. Here’s a look at two Moby videos created in support of his ninth album (out today on Little Idiot). I’ve also included a preview clip of Bjork’s live Voltaic CD/DVD release. (Complete clips from the DVD would be nice but sadly, there are leaked or uploaded as yet.)
Artist:Moby Album:Wait for Me Songs: “Shot in the Back of the Head,” “Pale Horses.”
Both of Moby’s new singles have intrigued me with their raw electro-meets-organic feel. The video for “Shot in the Back of the Head” is David Lynch’s dark and abstract translation of the song, which is rather gloomy all on its own; and “Pale Horses,” the second single with haunting female vocals by Amelia and melancholy overtones, is directed by Elanna Allen and follows a lonely alien who takes a train to the moon to find some companions. Both are animated, but in very different styles. Grade: A for both; the music was good and the videos compelling enough to make me want to check out Moby’s new album. (CHECK OUT THE VIDEOS AFTER THE JUMP). Read the rest of this entry »
Wednesday, March 18: I arrived to Austin by 9:30am, exhausted from the previous night’s St. Patty’s Day festivities. On the plane Flee and Jo Ellen (from WMNF and The Globe respectively) had the privilege to watch me zonk out with mouth agape for most of the 2 hour flight.
Excitement was high as soon as I deplaned. Dozens of people carrying guitar cases were scurrying about the terminal as if late for a very important meeting. I took a shuttle to the “Little” Ramada on the far ass north of town, where I would be staying during my visit. The driver ran me down the key places to visit in Austin (Bat Country, The Capitol), the great restaurants to visit (Guero’s) and that I shouldn’t walk the streets around my hotel alone at night. At first impression Austin seemed tired and run down, with haggard bums adorning every street corner.
Upon arriving to the hotel, I met two bands off the bat: Colombia’s Raton Perez and London’s Little Thief. I took advantage of my “journalist status” and did a quick interview with each:
Posted by Leilani Polk on Mar. 20, 2009, at 3:08 pm
Just came across this on YouTube. It’s a video for Jeffrey Lewis & The Junkyard’s song, “To Be Objectified.” In it, quirky pop songwriter and artist Lewis creates a time-lapsed, large scale illustration while his performance is rotoscoped into a comic book cartoon. The entire thing is produced by Lewis himself and is pretty darn cool. The song is from Lewis’ forthcoming album, ‘Em Are I, due out in May on Rough Trade Records.
In the hip-hop community, no one really wants to be labeled a hater. While I don’t hate Lil Wayne, I am far from a fan. I respect the fact that he has put out more music than any other major hip-hop artist in the last five years and probably has the best work ethic of any rapper not named Tupac Shakur. But is doing your job really worth the iconic status he seems to have achieved? I’m going to have to say no. So at the risk of earning the not-so-superlative hater label, I present to you my Top 3 reasons why a dead Biggie Smalls is better than a living Lil Wayne.
Lil Wayne has been successful but is he really a worthy successor?
Coattails
Sean Combs might be the owner, but Christopher “Biggie Smalls” Wallace, better known as the Notorious B.I.G., is responsible for the Bad Boy Entertainment empire. The considerable wealth Combs amassed thanks to Mr. Wallace’s efforts funded his Sean John clothing line and propelled Puff Daddy to stardom. Diddy got a Grammy for his No Way Out album that featured Biggie on five songs. He also gave Lil Kim, the most popular female rapper of her time, her start.
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.
It used to be that MTV would overplay videos to such a degree that it was impossible not to know the latest singles by Madonna, or Prince, or Michael Jackson (may he RIP). Those artists blew wads of cash to make miniature movies for their songs. (Michael and sister Janet’s 1995 acclaimed video duet, “Scream,” cost $7 million alone to produce.)
many artists have turned to YouTube to get the vids out and are likely alot more budget conscious when making them. The results vary from fun and inspired to downright garbage. Here’s a look at two Moby videos created in support of his ninth album (out today on Little Idiot). I’ve also included a preview clip of Bjork’s live Voltaic CD/DVD release. (Complete clips from the DVD would be nice but sadly, there are leaked or uploaded as yet.)
Album: Wait for Me
