IM BACK!!

Terribly sorry for my abscense of late. I had computer troubles. So much so that I was on the verge of buying a laptop! But that is all sorted now and I'm back to being fully operational!

Expect usual posting to resume very shortly.

Animal Collective To Curate ATP Festival In May 2011

Animal Collective's last album Merriweather Post Pavilion was hailed with universal acclaim; 5 Stars from Uncut, 8/10 from NME and a 9.6 from Pitchfork, who also named it their album of the year and put it in their top 20 albums of the decade. ATP promoter Barry Hogan: "I always wondered what kind of mixtape Animal Collective would put together, so we are really stoked that they are climbing into the curating hot seat at Butlins next May where they will headline and curate the festival that includes the likes of Lee Scratch Perry and Gang Gang Dance from an already eclectic mix of 40+ acts."

The first announcements chosen by Animal Collective for the line-up are:


ANIMAL COLLECTIVE
GANG GANG DANCE
LEE SCRATCH PERRY
ARIEL PINK'S HAUNTED GRAFFITI
BROADCAST
BLACK DICE
MEAT PUPPETS performing Up On The Sun
THE FROGS performing It's Only Right & Natural
IUD
OMAR-S
PRINCE RAMA
SPECTRUM
DENT MAY
GROUP DOUEH
THE BROTHERS UNCONNECTED
SUBLIME FREQUENCIES DJs + Films
DERADOORIAN
ZOMBY
VLADISLAV DELAY

with far more to be announced!

Yo La Tengo

Can't seem to stop listening to Yo La Tengo. For the last few days I have been crankin' them, almost exclusively. Love em'!


I like that you never know what you're going to get with each album. They always find a way of surprising you. Not to mention how brilliantly inventive and creative they are as a unit. And Georgia Hubley's voice..Wow.


The albums I have been listening to a lot are, And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out, I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One and Electr-o-Pura. All fantastically brilliant! To tell the truth, its taken me until now to give Yo La Tengo a really thorough listen. I'd heard some stuff before..But I had only had like, a real casual sort of listen. I'm glad I took the time to really absorb the tunes and get into these albums. It has been a rewarding experience.

I don't know how many of you, my faithful blogger army, use or have heard of the music program Spotify...But for those that have, and use the thing, I have taken the time to compile a playlist of Yo La Tengo songs from the three albums that I mentioned!

HERE IS THE LINK!


Yo La Tengo.

Bands You Should Listen To: Animal Collective

 

Animal Collective formed in 2000 in Baltimore, Maryland. Childhood friends Dave Porter (AKA: Avey Tare), Noah Lennox (AKA: Panda Bear), Josh Dibb (AKA: Deakin) and Brian Weitz (AKA: Geologist) used to trade various pieces of music that they had created and thought it only right to come together and start their own project.

It is certainly hard to pin Animal Collective's sound to one genre. They have been compared to just about everyone and have a tendency to not stay in one spot for too long. Their first release, ' Spirit They're Gone, Spirit They've Vanished (2001) ' on the bands own label, is possibly their most accessible record. It features bold experimentation in pop, noise and melodic psych-folk. The band were clearly not afraid to show some originality and expanded even more on Spirits.. template with their second release ' Danse Manatee (2001) '. This record touched on more than a few styles and influences and while not being the most accessible record in the world, it definitely showed a band that had a lot of ideas.

The band seem to surpass themselves with each release. Constantly honing their skills and improving their craft. 2004's Sung Tongs was a stripped down, hushed affair full of beautiful acoustic numbers such as ' The Softest Voice ' and the delightfully intoxicating ' Visiting Friends '. it was not without its moments of chaotic frenzy though, as evident on the songs ' We Tigers ' and the alluring yet false delicacy of ' Winters Love '.

2005 brought about the album ' Feels '. Many fans and critics consider this to be the bands greatest achievemnet and its worth listening to for ' Banshee Beat ' alone. And 2007's ' Strawberry Jam ' made them darlings among the indie music elite and poster children of American review/music site, Pitchfork .
The collectives popularity has reached its zenith now with the advent of their latest relase, ' Merriweather Post Pavilion (2009) '. An album dripping with lush arrangements and vocal harmonies, it was unlike anything that the band had done before. Especially when weighed up against previous releases such as the live album ' Hollinndagain (2002) ' and 2003's ' Here Comes The Indian '.

Why You Should Listen To Animal Collective

• You would be hard pressed to find a more engaging, creative or original band.
• Music is changing. And you have these guys to thank. They will pave the way for a lot of new, exciting bands in the future.
• Just listen to their album ' Feels (2005) ' and im sure you will see what I mean.

Selected Tracks
My Girls (Merriweather Post Pavilion)
Banshee Beat (Feels)
Loch Raven (Feels)
For Reverend Green (Strawberry Jam)
Winters Love (Sung Tongs)
Chocolate Girl (Spirit They're Gone, Spirit They've Vanished)

 

Awesome Bird #2

Fellow Bloggers!! HELP ME OUT!

http://torontoist.com/virginamerica/?entry=0003 could you do me a HUGE, MASSIVE favor and just click the "like" button underneath this article! I would be forever in your debt if ya could! CHEERS!

Seriously, the person that this is for is awesome and has been going through some rough times lately. A nice break from the shitty norms of her daily routine would be most welcome. I will love you all forever if you click the "like" button underneath this article. Thank ya!

Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest: Review

Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest: Review

Deerhunter, a self proclaimed "ambient punk" band, first emerged sometime in 2001. The band, lead by charismatic, yet softly spoken, Bradford Cox, have released a number of albums that seem to meld together the pounding, scuzzy and abrasive sounds found in garage rock with the lulling, dreamy qualities heard in shoegaze rock. This formula makes for very interesting and appealing listening and they have been praised by both music fans and critics alike.
Their most recent effort, Halcyon Digest, is possibly their most realised, cohesive and engaging attempt at mastering their unique sound.

The album flows along beautifully. Lyrically, Cox seems to lamenting the dissapearance of more simple times, his words dripping with an aching sense of nostalgia and longing. The album opener " Earthquake " is presented in the form of a slowed drum track followed by beautiful guitar arpeggios and Cox's hushed vocals. Its definitely an album highlight and sets up the rest of the record nicely.
Things suddenly shift up a few gears and " Revival " blasts through the speakers, reminding fans of Deerhunter why they fell in love with the band in the first place.
This is a band that have gotten better and better with each release. A lot of care has been taken into these song arrangements, although the uninitiated listener would easily be forgiven to think that some of the arrangements are like a patchwork quilt of sounds. Lingering and drifting slowly from one idea to the next.

The album flirts between stripped down sparseness and liberal instrumentation. We are treated to saxophones even! On the track " Coronado ". The sparse moments come..And they are nothing short of mesmerizing. Cox sings, " only fear/ can make you feel lonely here " with such sincerity in his voice during " Sailing ", it's hard not feel slightly choked up.
The real special moment here though is the song " Helicopter ". With Cox singing " No one cares for me/ I keep no company/ I have minimal needs/ And now they are through with me " all over the backing of a lush sound scape consisting of drum beats, electro-acoustic guitars and the usual gorgeous textures associated with ambient rock. It's a truly awesome few minutes of music.

Halcyon Digest is a simply brilliant album. An essential addition to any serious music collectors repitoire and, of course an absolute must for any deerhunter fan.
It is easily their most fully realised album, in terms of the sound the band had set about creating for themselves.
9.5