New vinyl only remix album from Citay

Citay has an album of remixes due out Nov 3rd (Nov 2nd in the UK) from Dead Oceans. This is what Dead Oceans has to say about it -
"From the ambient textures of White Rainbows' "Eye on Dollar" remix to Cornershop's Anthony Saffery adding sitar and percussion to "First Fantasy," these are anything but typical remix rave-ups. These Are Powers' Brenmar (aka Bill Salas) gives "Moonburn" a playful, skittering treatment, while Black Mountains' Steve McBean adds his effected vocals to "Former Child" – the end result sounding more like Metallica than like Aphex Twin. While some remixes use the Citay originals as a foundation for embellishments, others simply take the audio as found sounds and source material. Either way, the reinterpretations of Citay's music on Remixes is surprising and eye-opening. Released on vinyl LP and via digital download, Remixes is the Citay album we never thought we would hear. We are pleased to share below an mp3 of White Rainbow’s remix of “Eye on the Dollar,” which is a subtle and lush reworking of the original."You can pre-order Citay's Remixes LP HERE.

Citay :: Eye on the Dollar (White Rainbow remix)

Eye on the Dollar video (Original Album version)

New Between the Buried and Me song

So BTBAM has a new song out. I really wanted it to be a stylistic change like between Alaska and Colors but not really that much has changed (not to say it isn't good, it is). They all still kill it and change it up enough for a 9 minute long song to sound fresh all the way through, and there are nice non metal interludes that could be fleshed out as complete songs if this were another band (but it's not). So if you know you already like them then this is for you. If you don't, then tread elsewhere (I hear Pearl Jam has a Target only release).

Obfuscation - Between The Buri...

back in the dressing room

This was posted on ?uestlove twitter after the Dirty Projectors played the same song for the Jimmy Fallon show. Beautiful.



Oh and if you're in austin be sure to either catch DP at ACL this weekend or at Antones on Mon the 26th.

(via)

Fool's Gold: Surprise Hotel [IAMSOUND]

Fool's Gold: Surprise Hotel

I can be a frog

The Flaming Lips "I Can Be A Frog"

"All for the Best" - New Thom Yorke video

So there's a new Thom Yorke video that came out today. It's a track from Ciao My Shining Star: The Songs of Mark Mulcahy, a tribute album with an impressive roster. For those of you who don't know (which included me until about 10 minutes ago) Mark Mulcahy is the man behind two beloved bands, Miracle Legion and Polaris (the band from the Pete & Pete intro).

You can watch the video over at Rolling Stone. This song features the vocals of his little brother Andy. The harmony and just plain lyrical awesomeness on the line "watch my brother cutting grass outside, sitting on a porch he told me it's a long way to go before we can rest, but it's all for the best" [thanks stereogum]

Here's the rest of the track list for Ciao My Shining Star: The Songs of Mark Mulcahy :

01 Thom Yorke - "All For The Best"
02 The National - "Ashamed Of The Story I Told"
03 Michael Stipe - "Everything's Coming Undone"
04 David Berkeley - "Loves The Only Thing That Shuts Me Up"
05 Dinosaur Jr. - "The Backyard"
06 Chris Harford & Mr Ray Neal - "Micon The Icon"
07 Frank Black - "Bill Jocko"
08 Vic Chesnutt - "Little Man"
09 Unbelievable Truth - "Ciao My Shining Star"
10 Butterflies Of Love - "I Have Patience"
11 Chris Collingwood (Fountains Of Wayne) - "Cookie Jar"
12 Frank Turner - "The Quiet One"
13 Rocket From The Tombs - "In Pursuit Of Your Happiness"
14 Ben Kweller - "Wake Up Whispering"
15 Josh Rouse - "I Woke Up In The Mayflower"
16 Autumn Defense - "Paradise"
17 Hayden -"Happy Birthday Yesterday"
18 Juliana Hatfield - "We're Not In Charleston Anymore"
19 Mercury Rev - "Sailors And Animals"
20 Elvis Perkins - "She Watches Over Me"
21 Sean Watkins - "A World Away From This One"

And just for fun... the Pete and Pete theme song

Bishop Allen tour North America

Bishop Allen are touring this fall in support of their latest album Grrr... , on Dead Oceans. The band has announced the unveiling of new songs, as well as some special surprises. I hope the surprise is glitter.

Bishop Allen :: Dimmer

Bishop Allen :: The Ancient Common Sense of Things

TOUR DATES:
10/27/09 Cambridge, MA - Middle East Downstairs
10/29/09 Montreal, QC - Il Motore
10/30/09 Toronto, ON - El Mocambo
11/01/09 Pontiac, MI - The Pike Room at Crofoot Ballroom
11/02/09 Madison, WI - High Noon Saloon
11/03/09 Omaha, NE - Slowdown
11/06/09 Vancouver, BC - The Media Club
11/07/09 Seattle, WA - Chop Suey
11/08/09 Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge
11/09/09 San Francisco, CA - The Rickshaw Shop
11/10/09 Los Angeles, CA - El Rey Theatre
11/13/09 Austin, TX - Mohawk
11/14/09 Ft Worth, TX - Lola's
11/15/09 Little Rock, AR - Sticky Fingerz Chicken Shack
11/21/09 Brooklyn, NY - Bell House

New Video from Throw Me the Statue

The guys over at Secretly Canadian just put this up. It's the video for the song "Hi-Fi Goon" directed by Jason Argyropoulos with cinematography by Bryce Fortner. It's pretty entertaining! So Check it out.

'While You Wait for the Others' Video

Grizzly Bear released a new video today. It's directed by Sean Pecknold, the director of the Fleet Foxes videos 'Mykonos' and 'White Winter Hymnal' (also he's Robin Pecknold's brother).

The Besnard Lakes to score Mark Ruffalo directorial debut

So... Mark Ruffalo is making a movie (his first time at the helm). The film stars both Ruffalo and Orlando Bloom and follows a paralyzed DJ named Delicious's attempts at healing. It is called Sympathy for Delicious which is a deliciously silly title for a movie. Where do The Besnard Lakes fit in to all of this? Well, they're scoring the movie. Which reminds me, why is the band movie score so under-utilized? Remember when Radiohead was going to score A Scanner Darkly (maybe it was just Thom Yorke, I don't remember)? Seriously, that would've been awesome. But back to the matter at hand, after listening to The Besnard Lakes, I get a real cinematic sort of feel. Lots of emotion. I think they're a pretty natural choice. So without further ado here's an mp3 and a couple videos. [thanks jagjaguwar]

The Besnard Lakes :: And You Lied To Me

Video for "Agent 13"

Video for "Devastation"

Between The Buried And Me Update

1. They're on tour

Sep 8 2009 8:00P	Cepsum-University of Montreal	Montreal, Quebec
Sep 9 2009 8:00P	Arrow Hall	Toronto, Ontario
Sep 11 2009 8:00P	Community Auditorium	Thunder Bay, Ontario
Sep 12 2009 8:00P	Winnipeg Convention Centre	Winnipeg, Manitoba
Sep 13 2009 8:00P	Praireland	Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Sep 14 2009 8:00P	Big 4 Building at Calgary Stampede	Calgary, Alberta
Sep 15 2009 8:00P	Shaw Conference Centre	Edmonton, Alberta
Sep 17 2009 8:00P	Pacific Coliseum	Vancouver, British Columbia
Sep 18 2009 8:00P	Knitting Factory	Spokane, Washington
Sep 19 2009 8:00P	Knitting Factory	Boise, Idaho
Sep 20 2009 8:00P	The New Oasis	Reno, Nevada
Sep 21 2009 8:00P	The Regency Center at the Grand Ballroom	San Francisco, California
Sep 22 2009 8:00P	The Fox Theatre	Pomona, California
Sep 23 2009 8:00P	Rialto Theatre	Tucson, Arizona
Sep 25 2009 8:00P	Concrete Street Amphitheatre	Corpus Christi, Texas
Sep 26 2009 8:00P	White Rabbit	San Antonio, Texas
Sep 27 2009 8:00P	House of Blues	New Orleans, Louisiana
Sep 29 2009 8:00P	Valarium	Knoxville, Tennessee
Sep 30 2009 8:00P	Expo Five	Lousiville, Kentucky
Oct 1 2009 8:00P	Mr. Smalls Theatre	Millvale, Pennsylvania
Oct 2 2009 8:00P	Starland Ballroom	Sayreville, New Jersey
Oct 3 2009 8:00P	House of Blues	Boston, Massachusetts
Oct 4 2009 8:00P	Trocadero	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Oct 5 2009 8:00P	9:30 Club	Washington DC, Washington DC
Oct 6 2009 8:00P	Amos Southend	Charlotte, North Carolina

2. They posted videos of them recording the new album









3. They posted a track with a preview of the album, The Great Misdirect, on their Myspace page.

4. The album comes out October 27th.

White Hinterland announes US tour

White Hinterland announce an extensive US tour. This tour features their new line-up of Casey Dienel and Shawn Creeden performing as a duo. You can pretty much expect them to play new material from an album that should be out early 2010 and I think will include these two tracks.

White Hinterland :: Dreaming of the Plum Trees

White Hinterland :: Chant de Grillon

TOUR DATES:
10/01/09 Seattle, WA - Sunset Tavern
10/02/09 Boise, ID - Neurolux
10/03/09 Salt Lake City, UT - Slowtrain
10/04/09 Denver, CO - Hi Dive
10/08/09 Chicago, IL - Schubas
10/09/09 Pontiac, MI - The Crofoot
10/11/09 Montreal, QC - Casa del Popolo
10/14/09 Cambridge, MA - Middle East w/ Former Ghosts
10/15/09 Brooklyn, NY - Bruar Falls
10/16/09 Philadelphia, PA - Black Lodge
10/18/09 Richmond, VA - The Triple
10/19/09 Charlotte, NC - YAUHAUS
10/23/09 Austin, TX - Mohawk
*** MORE TOUR DATES ADDED SOON***

Movie Scoring and Rock Music

So, maybe some of you have heard already, but for those that haven't, Mastodon is currently working on scoring a western horror comic book movie called Jonah Hex.
The movie is based around a ex-confederate officer, Jonah Woodson Hex (Josh Brolin), post American Civil War. Now, I haven't read the comic, but the character is compared to Clint Eastwood's Man with No Name and The Outlaw Josey Wales. Scanning through the biography of the fictional character (via Wikipedia [which we all know now as the truth]) 3 things grab my attention; he was raised by Apaches, human taxidermy, and time travel.
Alongside Mastodon are Harry Gregson-Williams and Trevor Rabin. Harry has scored movies like The Rock, The Chronicles of Narnia (both of them), and Team America: World Police. Also, he has previously scored Metal Gear Solid 2-4. Now, you might know Trevor Rabin as the vocalist/guitarist/songwriter from one of my favorite albums of all time, Fragile, by British Prog-Rock band Yes.
When asked what the score sounds like the answer was "Needless to say, pretty heavy!" Others to star in the movie include Megan Fox, John Malkovich, and a cameo from an alcoholic; psychedelic lovin; metal guitarist.

On a different note, I was just informed of a new band from Portland, Oregon with Johnny Whitney (the Blood Brothers) and Cody Votolato (Pretty Girls Make Graves) named Jaguar Love. At first I didn't like it, but then it grew on me like mold grows on cheese. It has a kind of wanna-be Volta sound around the De-loused era, which I really, REALLY enjoy. The only difference is it is more of a focused rock sound and the vocals have also been compared to a "modern day" Robert Plant.
Speaking of Led Zepplin, check out the video I've posted at the bottom of the new "Super Group", Them Crooked Vultures. Now, I'm not the biggest fan of "Super Groups" lately (ex. Chickenfoot, Audioslave, Velvet Revovler, Alter Bridge, Angels & Airwaves, Hellyeah, Damnocracy, etc...) but this has 3 of my favorite musicians; Josh Homme, Dave Grohl, and John Paul Jones.
Now I'm not saying this will happen, but I think it would be kind of ironic if in the beginning of the next decade major label music had a huge shift from overly produced; rhythmic based; pop music and up-tempo; prog wanna-be; arena rock to straight forward; melodic based rock and Dave Grohl was playing drums.

Sweet HEALTH remix.

This is a sweet remix of the HEALTH song 'Die Slow' done by Tobacco of Black Moth Super Rainbow. I think I like it more than the original.

HEALTH :: Die Slow (Remix by Tobacco)

Bowerbirds - catch them if you can.

So, in a summer full of amazing concerts, the one that caught me most off guard was Bowerbirds and Megafaun (8/13 @ Mohawk). Phil Moore's vocals are so disarming, and the intimate setting made it even more effective.  They've just announced a fall tour starting at Denmark and ending in the Bowery Ballroom in New York on 12/4. So if you happen to be in Europe or on the East Coast I highly recommend checking them out. Since most of you are in Austin, I hope you got to see them when you had the chance. Here's a video of Bowerbirds performing at an apartment concert hosted by La Blogotheque. The band performs several songs up close and personal for a dozen or so lucky fans as part of La Blogotheque’s new series, Les Soirées de Poche.

Bowerbirds :: Northern Lights
Bowerbirds :: Beneath Your Tree




Tour Dates:
10/10/09 Aarhus, Denmark - Voxhall
10/11/09 Copenhagen, Denmark - Loppen
10/12/09 Hamburg, Germany - Knust
10/13/09 Berlin, Germany - Zapata
10/14/09 Nurnbeg, Germany - K4
10/16/09 Nijmegen, Netherlands - Doornroosje
10/17/09 Utrecht, Netherlands - Ekko
10/18/09 Frankfurt, Germany - Brotfabrik
10/19/09 Munchen, Germany - Feierwerk
10/22/09 Barcelona, Spain - Sidecar
10/23/09 Valencia, Spain - Wah Wah Club
10/24/09 Barcelona, Spain - Neu! Club
10/26/09 Paris, France - Point FMR
10/27/09 London, UK - Cargo
10/28/09 Leeds, UK - Brudenell
10/29/09 Cardiff, UK - Clwb Ifor Bach
10/30/09 Edinburgh, UK - Sneaky Pete's
10/31/09 Glasgow, UK - Captain's Rest
11/01/09 Manchester, UK - Dulcimer
11/05/09 Durham, NC - Troika Music Festival
11/06/09 Lookout Mountain, GA - Covenant College
11/07/09 Tallahassee, FL - Club Downunder
11/08/09 West Columbia, SC - New Brookland Tavern
11/15/09 Lexington, KY - Al's Bar w/ Candy
11/16/09 Louisville, KY - The 930 Listening Room
11/17/09 Nashville, TN - Exit/In
11/18/09 Fayetteville, AR - RZ's Coffeehouse
11/27/09 Charlottesville, VA - The Southern w/ Birdlips
11/28/09 Baltimore, MD - The Ottobar
11/30/09 Boston, MA - Paradise*
12/01/09 Providence, RI - Hi-Hat*
12/02/09 Washington, DC - Rock and Roll Hotel*
12/03/09 Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church*
12/04/09 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom*
*w/Elvis Perkins in Dearland

I drink for a reason

So, David Cross is not quite a musician, but I believe that this does merit a mention. Along with his new book I Drink for a Reason, David will be touring and doing stand up around the country. as I'm writing this I'm patiently waiting for tickets to go on sale from his performance at the paramount on oct 14. Fun fact, the two closest acts surrounding David Cross' link on the Protix.com web site are Insane Clown Posse and Jewel, both who I would hope would be in attendance, though neither act will be in Austin. Read his book.

New video from Wild Beasts

Here's the video for the new Wild Beasts song called "All the King's Men" from the upcoming Two Dancers due out September 8th on Domino. If you're in New York they're playing their 2nd ever US show at Joe's Pub, also 9/8.

Kyp Malone's magic Rain Machine

Kyp Malone, from TV on the Radio, has just released his second track from solo effort Rain Machine. I think the mostly sparse slowbuild type arrangements free up the song for Kyp's singing to really be effective. The first track Give Blood is a bit of a fuzzier affair. The album is due out September 22nd from Anti- Records. Here's the tracklist:

Track List:
01. Intro
02. Give Blood
03. New Last Name
04. Smiling Black Faces
05. Driftwood Heart
06. Hold you Holy
07. Desperate Bitch
08. Love Won't Save You
09. Free Ride
10. Leave the Lights On
11. Winter Song

Rain Machine :: Smiling Black Faces

Rain Machine :: Give Blood

[thanks stereogum]

Voodoo Fest

So with Voodoo Fest coming up here in a few months I will be posting little snippets of video from some of the better bands that will be in attendance.....first KISS (PISS)



Watch this....its hilarious

Delicious crunchy prog!

So I'm not quite sure how I didn't already know about this but one of my favorite metal bands, Baroness, is releasing a new album on October 13th called Blue Record. It's supposed to be a companion piece with Red Album (my vote for second best metal album of 2007 which was a kickass year for the genre). The first two songs are up on their myspace, and I highly recommend checking it out.

Fun fun fun fest announces full line up

The always amazing Fun Fun Fun Fest has really harpooned the whale this time. The dudes that book ACL really oughta take a note from the folks over at fffest. First off, a newly reunited Death is set to make everyone... well, die. Then you've got Danzig, Les Savy Fav, GZA the list literally goes on and on. Check out the all the bands here.

More dubbed out goodness.

Here's a new video from Forest Swords. They have a new cassette due out on Woven Tones soon.

Forest Swords - Glory Gongs from the battle on Vimeo.

Imagine a soundtrack to chaos

Leave it to Lightning Bolt to create a 7 minute auditory stomping. Compared to previous lightning bolt songs Colossus actually sounds somewhat mixed. I've never had the chance to experience them in person, but have heard stories. Listen to Colossus and imagine wearing a micmask thing.

Lighting Bolt :: Colossus

Volcano Choir's first single.

The first single from Justin Vernon, best known as Bon Iver, and Milwuakee band Collections of Colonies of Bees (collaboratively known as Volcano Choir) "Island IS" really is damn good. Justin's voice is amazingly expressive (still) and it's complemented well by a sort of minimalist sounding guitar pulse and an insistant rhythm. It almost reminds me of parts of Steve Reich's Different Trains. It's rare to strike so tenuous a balance between the comforting and the experimental, but I think this song pulls it off well without sounding plastic-y or contrived. Volcano Choir's first album Unmap will be released on September 22nd on Jagjaguwar. Jagjaguwar is one of my favorite labels right now and they've really been doing a super job putting out some of the best music, so if you haven't already taken a look at there website/roster/events do it soon.

Volcano Choir :: Island IS

RIP Les Paul.

see headline for content

A quick word, if we may pause the music for a moment. Glasses up, everyone.

Our so-called imaginary readership,

 Let us please take a moment to celebrate the cherished anniversary of birth of our dear blog host, our beloved Stewar... wait... in order to protect his online anonymity, I feel I shouldn't divulge his actual name... Our beloved Stewbot (Trunchy to me). 
 That said, happy birthday Stewbot, fount of the best kind superfluous knowledge that a constantly curious seeker eager to be mildly bewildered through human engagement could possibly encounter on a particular day, and yet also the most perceptive casual observer and wise-word dispenser. Thank you for remaining incorrigibly sane amidst the ever-insistent inane insanity. You're positively daft for maintaining your composure, but I don't blame you. Salubriousness takes precedence over capriciousness.
 In short, before I chew my own leg off (figuratively, weirdly), huzzah, my friend, for still being alive so that such an interjection remains possible (or appropriate). And, dear readers, please observe a moment of rowdy abandon today in homage to the continuing life of another vagrant genius in Babylon. Today, his breath is the world's divinity (allowing that he brushes his teeth upon waking).

Feliz cumpleaño, my friend. The resplendency of Barton Springs is nigh.

P.S. Sorry Trunchy, but I intend on making you regret granting me authorship on this page. Oh, yes.

New Memory Cassette video

I haven't posted anything in a while, as I'm kind of preoccupied by my birthday and upcoming move to New York. Look for regular updates again in a couple weeks. But until then here's this fun new Memory Cassette video directed by Pat Vamos.

SURFIN'/BODY IN THE WATER-MEMORY CASSETTE from PAT VAMOS on Vimeo.

Sunset Rubdown announce fall tour.

So this is definitely worth checking out. If you're in europe. Or parts of the US that arent texas.

Prepare for much dragon slayage in Europe and beyond:

9/02/09 Groningen, Netherlands - Vera
9/03/09 Malmo, Sweden - Debaser
9/04/09 Goteborg, Sweden - Parken
9/05/09 Stockholm, Sweden - Strand
9/06/09 Copenhagen, Denmark - Loppen
9/07/09 Hamburg, Germany - Knust
9/08/09 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Paradiso
9/10/09 Glasgow, UK - Stereo
9/11/09 Belfast, UK - Spring and Airbrake
9/12/09 Dublin, Ireland - Crawdaddy
9/13/09 Leeds, UK - Brudenell Social Club
9/14/09 Manchester, UK - The Deaf Institute
9/15/09 London, UK - Garage
9/16/09 Cardiff, UK - The Glode
9/18/09 Leffinge, Belgium - Leffingeleuren
9/19/09 Brussels, Belgium - Botanique
9/20/09 Berlin, Germany - Magnet Club
9/21/09 Leipzig, Germany - Ut Connewitz
9/22/09 Munchen, Germany - 59:1
9/23/09 Vienna, Austria - B72
9/24/09 Zagreb, Croatia - KSET
9/25/09 Ljublijana, Slovenia - Menza Pri Koritu
9/26/09 Pisa, Italy - Caracol
9/27/09 Carpi, Italy - Mattatoio
9/30/09 Lille, France - L'Aeronef

10/01/09 Paris, France - Point FMR

10/16/09 New York, NY - Manhattan Center Grand Ballroom

10/17/09 Baltimore, MD - Sonar

10/18/09 Columbus, OH - The Summit

10/19/09 Chicago, IL - Logan Square Auditorium

10/20/09 Madison, WI - High Noon Saloon

10/21/09 St. Louis, MO - Off Broadway Nightclub

10/22/09 Denver, CO - Bluebird Theater

10/24/09 Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge

10/26/09 San Francisco, CA - Slim's

10/27/09 West Hollywood, CA - The Troubadour

An they say dry humping is boring...

So, I don't know how many of you out there like to dance. I know that I'm a big fan. Though the video for Pon De Floor from Major Lazer brings dancing to a whole new level of spectular. I wish everybody danced like this. Imagine....a beautiful wedding, family and friends waiting for the couples first dance...then BAM, the groom launches of a ladder only to start humping the shit out of the bride! In a perfect world....


anyone have a favorite move? Mine is obviously the ladder hump.

Sounds like a time traveler's lament.

Check out this new album Apple's Acre by Nurses from Dead Oceans. The music feels like its shambling towards something it never quite reaches, but in a good way, the way that mirrors human experience.

Apple's Acre - Nurses

Also, interview with Dan Deacon coming soon. Ideas for questions?

A few questions and a few answers.

Neon Indian :: Deadbeat Summer

So here's my first interview (of anyone, ever) with Alan Palomo of VEGA and Neon Indian. I gotta be honest I was surprised by the sincerity and depth/scope of his responses.

SP: Growing up, did you have early exposure to music performance?

AP: I did. Mostly in the same way that people reminisce about the bands their parents listened to during childhood. My father’s been a musician most his whole life and constantly exposed my brother and I to his influences. Lots of Beatles, Caetano Veloso, Doobie Brothers etc. By the time we were born he already had a brief stint as a pop star in Mexico during the late seventies/early eighties and written the bulk of his original material. Though I was around it constantly, I think I absorbed most it passively. My brother was always more musical. I didn’t really show any interest in making music till the end of highschool when my dad and I found a dusty old Oberheim Synth in a pawn shop. Things changed quite a bit shortly after.

SP: What bands push your nostalgia button?

AP: The Clientele’s Suburban Light will always be my ultimate nostalgia album. Something in the songwriting and natural reverb has always allowed me to picture the chilly, humid studio they must have recorded the demos in and how close to the pub it must have been to have that ‘fresh from emotional grind’ feel to it. But I tend to go through phases with nostalgic bands. I’ll trick myself into thinking each genre has its place of origin that its meant to evoke in terms of memory or imagery whether experienced or borrowed. I remember obsessing over Question Mark and the Mysterians, The Clean, or anything with equal amounts of eerie reverb and proto-punk organ sounds because of the Jarmusch-esque imagery it would evoke. I’ll get kinda stuck in that with stuff like “Deadbeat Summer”. As far as anything electronic though, any single from New Order. Easily.

SP: Did it feel weird to be featured on ABC world news? Did they approach you about it?

AP: Very. I was humbled at the opportunity to do it but was really curious to see if the average ABC news-goer would go for it. The most unusual part was trying to explain the ins and outs of a microcosmic music genre/scene in a matter of sentences to such a varied audience. I couldn’t help imagining a bunch of moms mumbling ‘dream-wave?’ to themselves as we filmed the answers. The way it came about was my roommate at the time had introduced me to a friend of his who worked as a camera op as well as a college correspondent at the local Austin station. She had always been very supportive of the VEGA project and when SXSW came around their national network wanted to find a national and a local act to follow around throughout the whole experience. She pitched the idea and they enjoyed the songs enough to go film them live. I don’t think I realized how available the video was going to be till she sent me a link weeks later. I was definitely stoked with the final product. She did an excellent job.

SP: What sort of 'life changing' circumstances caused you to leave Ghosthustler? Do you still feel like you made the right decision, and how, in your opinion, have you grown as an artist?

AP: I was feeling pretty lost around the time of the Ghosthustler demise. That spring semester I completely blew off school and the few times I went to class I basically sat with my laptop and answered emails from the band page. It was becoming a pattern since we started. The momentum just didn’t seem worth negating other responsibilities in my life as a little over a year after its conception we were still scuffling with ideas in hopes of finding some finite aesthetic to run with. Working on music with my band-mates became a needless power grab for direction and the fun factor just decayed slowly over time. Having no foreseeable releases in the future and giving in to the musical limbo just didn’t seem auspicious given the attention and at some point it just seemed right to bail. After a few awkward shows at SXSW I decided if I was going to veer into a hazy musical tangent, I was at least going to do it under my own circumstances. Not say I didn’t have serious anxiety over it upon leaving but I never really doubted that at the very least I’d be happier working by myself. My move to Austin essentially isolated me to the confines of my room where I was free to toil away with sounds and balance my life. In retrospect, I probably should have done it sooner.

SP: When you begin a project do you have specific intentions for the final product?

AP: Depends on the project. VEGA has always been very meticulous from the start given its more production heavy sound. The summer in which I laid the foundation for it I chose a very specific set of influences by which to start writing from. As I’ve ranted about before, I became heavily infatuated with the modular synth sweeps of Todd Rundgren, Robert Wyatt, ELO, and Space. Synthpop still had its place in my ipod but it seems the late seventies had more to offer in terms of variations on the cosmic space sound without being so tightly compressed into the kicks and snares of the linndrum Italo craze. Though this initial ep was mainly dance tracks, it leaves open the possibility to step out of the dance floor a bit on the album. Neon Indian however is the complete invert. Many of the songs off Psychic Chasms started off as creative exercises to take a break from the tedious production habits of Well Known Pleasures. I didn’t really go into it further than using a certain tools and sounds to make the songs. My intentions as far as that’s concerned is to purge certain musical and emotional impulses. It wasn’t until finishing the EP that I dived into the aesthetic of Neon Indian head first and wrote as much material as possible. It probably kept me sane.

SP: Neon Indian is considerably less dance oriented (from what I've heard so far) than Vega, is this an indicator of a broader change in your life? Or merely another facet of music to explore?

AP: It’s tough to say at this point. I don’t think either project is any less honest or less representative of where I’m at though Neon Indian probably just does it with more transparency because its guidelines seem less restricted. It all ties back to growth. I feel like I still have much to learn in the way of complete unadulterated expression because I’m still very much so learning about the medium I’m choosing to work through. Obviously, what happens in my life dictates the subject matter but I could never see myself writing music as just Alan because these projects eventually become meditations on a concept and evolve through the attempted variations over time. They generally stick to one thing and see it through until becoming something else entirely. Neon Indian just so happens to suit me at the moment because that one thing it does is essentially explore sounds. Since the template to work under is pretty broad, the songs sharply veer into themselves and the only thing stringing them together is my vocals and the particular recording style or instruments I use.

SP: What's your take on the mass flooding of lo-fi acts coming out recently? Is it gimmicky or not? (or does it depend on the band)

AP: Definitely depends. I’d be lying if claimed it to be a gimmick-free genre. But at the very least it IS a genre, which means its has enough dimension to be based on some really excellent music. The production qualities of lo-fi totally gives lee way for some lazy songwriting/recording but it’s easy to tell those apart. Trends and bandwagons are pretty unavoidable in the days of blog. When I listen to someone like Ariel Pink or Times New Viking, the amount of effort is completely incomparable to some dude who wrote his first track ever using distortion plug-ins from garageband and sent it to all his favorite blogs. Half the time, when I hear something like that, its generally obvious where the gimmick lies. It’s the notion that it’s just easier to make/get noticed. Hiding discrepancies in reverbs and distortions is a pretty old trick that even I’m guilty of from time to time, but it should never be only thing the song/artist has going for it. That’s just plain missing the boat. One would think the goal would be to write a good enough song that the quality of its conception becomes irrelevant.

SP:And on that note, what do you think about the hype based popularization musical artists? Has it always been this way?

AP: Hype has become quite the currency in music and I’d say it seems to have more clout now than it ever did. My only concern it that its causes genres to proliferate too quickly, begin self referencing themselves at an exponentially faster rate, then implode like a supernova, leaving behind a residue of hundreds of shitty mp3s. It was a shame seeing that happen to the electro genre. We literally watched it grow under a microscope and become the single most burnt out sound of the decade in under two years. Had this happened before the Internet, we would have seen it grow organically and evolve over time without becoming oversaturated. It wouldn’t have seemed like a such a clusterfuck to exhaust all possible variations in an attempt to retain relevance if only for a few weeks more. But then again, that was sort of the proto-genre for this new system. It’s tough to say if that would happen with the next series of trends.

SP: And lastly drugs and music. Always, sometimes, or never?

AP: Always, but only sometimes if not never.

Thanks again Alan. Super Awesome.

-Stewart

Songs for the summer.

Let me start by saying I love the summer. And even more, I love summer jams. This summer has been ripe with them, so we here at fatstacks thought you (our imaginary readership) ought to have some sort of list to appropriately soundtrack your next heat-fueled-alcohol-induced poolside adventure.


The Very Best :: Warm Heart of Africa

YACHT :: Psychic City (Voodoo City)

Neon Indian :: Terminally Chill

Rainbow Bridge :: Big Wave Rider

Major Lazer :: Cash Flow (Classixx Glass Bottom Dub Mix)

Ancient Crux :: In Teen Dreams

Here We Go Magic :: Tunnelvision

Best Coast :: The Sun Was High(so was I)


And lastly is my all time favorite (of this summer) hyper aware capitalist mega corporate conglomerate obesity driven dance track. With a hot midi sax.



-Stewart

Megafaun Gather, Form, & Fly

Gather, Form & Fly - Megafaun

Lazy

So I guess posting music videos is a pretty lazy way to update this site. And in that spirit here's a new Of Montreal video.

United States of Eurasia

This is a new song from Muse called United States of Eurasia.

New Thom Yorke song

Here's Thom Yorke performing a new song live:

Yay for awesome!

I love it. How could you not? (aside from being a terrible human being devoid of any redeeming characteristics)

"The Flaming Lips :: Silver Trembling Hands"

thanks (again) pitchfork

Cool new Video

What's up with the ridiculousness coming out of Glasgow these days? All I gotta say is keep it coming. Here's Dananananaykroyd with their new video for "Some Dresses [Best Before]". I like it.

Grateful Collective of Dead Animals

Animal Collective snags the first ever officially liscensed Grateful Dead sample. The timing of this is very strange. Passing of the old guard. I dunno, lots to think about. Anywho the sample is "Unbroken Chain" for this newish song "What Would I Want Sky".

Lots of stuff today.

It's a good day for fans of music. Fader posted "Walkabout", the first song from the upcoming Atlas Sound album Logos (due Oct 20th on Kranky). It's a dreamy pop number that features Panda Bear (Noah Lennox) on vocals. 

I toured for a period in Europe with Animal Collective, whose band dynamic was very inspirational to be around. On the bus, we often played improvised iPod games. We would take turns formulating a theme or unifying concept and then play three songs. The goal would be for everyone to try and figure out the theme. During one of these games, someone played 'What Am I Going to Do' by the Dovers. I was amazed at the hook-- a weird organ thing with drums and electric bass. I mentioned to Noah [Lennox] that someone should really sample that riff. He agreed and he taught me a little about sampling and matching up beats. This ended up as the collaborative effort 'Walkabout'. 

                                 -Bradford Cox (aka Atlas Sound) on the origins of "Walkabout"  [thanks pitchfork]

Atlas Sound :: Walkabout

Also new trippy as hell Black Moth Super Rainbow video. It's like soulfood. If you're weird.



And last but not least, here's who's confirmed for an appearance at the 2009 Fun Fun Fun Fest. GZA, the Jesus Lizard, Atlas Sound, Melt Banana, King Khan & BBQ Show, Why?, Broadcast, and Red Sparrowes. That's November 7th & 8th at Waterloo Park here in Austin. Can't wait to see GZA the genius. I'm slowly but surely checking all living Wu-Tang Clan members off of my 'haven't seen yet' list. Which reminds me August 9th at Emo's Method Man, Redman, and Ghostface Killah get tickets here.