Music from My Mailbox

Could I just copy the words to The Sun Also Rises, throw in some fresh adjectives and updated references and get it published as the remixed version? Honestly, I’m so tired of remixes. I go through my inbox and see remix after remix after remix. Are you serious? Make your own damned music if you’re so talented. And not to be hateful, but I don’t even care if you disagree.

So, that said, here’s what I found that wasn’t just someone else’s music with a couple of echo effects and a drum loop thrown in: While this mailbox purge is short on my beloved garage punk, there are still a few interesting things here. The first I want to mention is The Emotron. I’m not sure what’s up with this guy. He lights his pubic hair on fire during live performances and claims to be some kind of synth-punk G.G. Allin, a feat I’m sure no one could really pull off. This song, “Drink A Beer for Me,” sounds more like a novelty song than it does anything from G.G.’s catalogue. See what you think.

There are a couple of reggae-type bands represented: 10ft. Tall Ganja Plant (ha! Like you wouldn’t have guess they were reggae!) and Indofin. Both are great for a relaxing on a summer evening.

“Neon for You” comes from My First Earthquake’s just released EP Crush. The disk hearkens back to 80’s pop and is very enjoyable. In a wide-open field, this track is one of my favorites.

As always, follow the links for more information.

My First Earthquake
Indie / Electro / Rock
From: San Francisco, Calif.
Band MySpace
Neon for You.mp3

10ft. Ganja Plant
Reggae / Dub / Roots Music
From: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Band MySpace
Bonny & Clyde.mp3

Love Crushed Velvet
Rock / Alternative / Pop
From: New York, N.Y.
Band MySpace
Love Crushed Velvet.mp3

Electric Tickle Machine
Indie / Alternative
From: East Village, N.Y.
Band MySpace
Honest Injun.mp3

Joy Ike
Indie / Soul / Pop
From: Pittsburgh, Penn.
Band MySpace
Sweeter.mp3

Indofin
Reggae / Ska / Punk
From: Austin, Texas
Band MySpace
Bluelight.mp3

Imagine Dragons
Indie / Pop / Rock
From: Las Vegas, Nev.
Band MySpace
Selene.mp3

Upstation
Pop / Indie
From: Moscow, Russian Federation
Band MySpace
No More Promises.mp3

The Emotron
Punk / Rock / New Wave
From: West Fuckin’ Philly/Georgia/Pennsylvania
Band MySpace
Drink a Beer for Me.mp3

Eagle Winged Palace
Acoustic / Indie / Classical
From: The Deepest Darkest Corners of California
Band MySpace
Movin’ on to Avalon.mp3

~~~~~
(pictures, top-to-bottom: My First Earthquake, Joy Ike, The Emotron)

~~~~~
As a reminder, there is a little less than two weeks left on my host, so if there is anything you want to hear, you need to act quickly.

Labels: "alternative", acousticness, indie, new wave, pop muzik, punk, reggae, rock, ska, soul

posted by aikin @ 12:16 PM 3 Comments

Music from My Mailbox and Other Important News

OK. Important things going on, so please don’t skip the first part of this post. I have slightly less than a month left on my web host. When that time is over, I am not planning to renew. What that means to you is, in all likelihood, I will bring this blog to an end. I’ve learned to never say never, but I’d say there is about a 99.9% chance Licorice Pizza will cease operations in about a month.

The reason for this decision is two-fold: First, while Dreamhost is an excellent host, I do pay quite a bit for that service. Quite frankly, I have never donated to anyone else’s blog fund and don’t feel you need to contribute to mine. This is something I do for fun and if you’re going to pay for my fun, well, there are other things you can buy me. But understand it’s not just about the cost of the host, which brings me to my second point:

I have been at this for four years and my interest has waned a bit, although I still go on posting jags once in a while (see last month). I can tell by the quality of some of the posts I’ve made recently that I’m forcing them and I don’t want to continue doing that.

Although this post has been on my mind for some time, it makes me a bit sad to actually write it. I may at some point decide I miss doing this and I’ll start up again. In the meantime, I assume that once my host expires, so does access to anything on that host. I encourage you to look back over the past couple of years for anything you wanted to hear but put off listening to. If you find something that is no longer available, drop me a note and I’ll do my best to re-up it.

I’ve started a Tumblr page, in case I feel like there’s something I need to say. You can up music on those pages, but you can’t share it, which is a disadvantage of sorts. Feel free to check it out if you care to; there’s not much there now but I may get more active with it in the future.

As always, follow the links for more information....

Grace Potter and the Nocturnals
Indie / Alternative
From: Vermont, USA
Band MySpace
Things I Never Needed (acoustic).mp3

Soft Tags
Indie / Shoegaze
From: Portland, Ore.
Band MySpace
The Pine Barrens.mp3

22-20s
Alternative
From: United Kingdom
Band MySpace
Latest Heartbreak.mp3

Ashton Nyte
Alternative / Folk / Indie
From: Johannesburg, South Africa
Band MySpace
Jennifer.mp3

Horrorfall
Electronica / Industrial / Shoegaze
From: Los Angeles, Calif.
Band MySpace
Necroplasm Fix.mp3

Nada Surf
Rock / Indie / Pop
From: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Band MySpace
Electrocution.mp3

The Constellations
Psychedelic / Ghettotech / Showtunes
From: Atlanta, Ga.
Band MySpace
Setback.mp3

Kyp Malone (TV on the Radio)
Acoustic / Indie
From: United States
Band MySpace
Frog Went a-Courtin’.mp3

Nadia Kazmi
Pop / Rock / Soul
From: Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Band MySpace
Mother.mp3

Burnt Ones
Minimalist / Psychedelic / Thrash
From: Indianapolis, Ind.
Band MySpace
Gonna Listen to T. Rex (All Night Long).mp3

The Public Good
Rock / Powerpop / Indie
From: Washington, D.C.
Band MySpace
My Pre-existing Conditions.mp3

~~~~~
(pictures, top-to-bottom: Grace Potter, Horrorfall, Nadia Kazmi)

Labels: "alternative", acousticness, electronic, folk, indie, pop muzik, rock

posted by aikin @ 12:02 PM 3 Comments

Music from My Mailbox

This seriously has to be one of the largest mailbox dumps I’ve ever done. Sixteen songs – and that’s after I deleted a good number I didn’t want to post. What’s funny is I started off thinking this was going to be an unusually small post because I had to go through about 20 e-mails before I ran across something I liked and wanted to post.

Like always, I was happy see big names like the Dead Weather and MIA reaching out to bloggers to help promote their respective albums. I’ve seen both of these tracks posted on other blogs the last few days, so I apologize I’m a little slow getting them to you.

Besides the Dead Weather, of course, some other tracks you should pay particular attention to: The Ex-Girlfriend’s Club and Best Coast both fit loosely into the garage / psycho-fuzz genres I like and can recommend.

A lot of bands sending out music seem to be shooting for summertime pop-hit type of stuff. Sometimes that can come across like they’re trying too hard, but the couple I picked here – The Like and Sonny and the Sunsets – are bearable, if not downright decent. The Like also went for a purposefully lo-fi sound, recording their album direct to analogue tape.

Finally, I usually shy away from remixes, but I went with this remixed cover of Ice T’s “Colors,” from the movie of the same name. I was just talking with someone the other day about the 1988 flick, a classic directed by Dennis Hopper and starring Robert Duvall and Sean Penn. If I still have the soundtrack, I may get that up as an OST OCD post soon.

Like always, follow the links for more info.

The Dead Weather
Rock / Blues / Gothic
From: Nashville, Tenn.
Band MySpace
Die By the Drop.mp3

Sonny and the Sunsets
Indie / Beach-Pop
From: San Francisco, Calif.
Band MySpace
Too Young To Burn.mp3

Pearly Gate Music
Tropical / Concrete
From: Seattle, Wash.
Band MySpace
Big Escape.mp3

MIA
Other
From: London & Southeast U.K.
Band MySpace
XXXO.mp3

Ganglians
Showtunes / Celtic / Roots Music
From: Sacramento, Calif.
Band MySpace
My House.mp3

Pete Covington
Alternative / Psychedelic / Pop
From: New South Wales, Australia
Band MySpace
Balloons.mp3

The Like
Pop / Garage
From: Los Angeles, Calif.
Band MySpace
Fair Game.mp3

Sleigh Bells
Electronic / Rock
From: Brooklyn, N.Y. & Florida
Band MySpace
Infinity Guitars.mp3

The Ex-Girlfriends Club
Garage / Rock / Glam
From: Portland, Ore.
Band MySpace
Your Prescription.mp3

Lana Del Ray
Glam / Surf / Hawaiian
From: New York, N.Y.
Band MySpace
Diet Mtn. Dew (demo).mp3

Yelawolf
Hip Hop / Ghettotech / Southern Rock
From: Gadsden, Ala.
Band MySpace
Good to Go (ft. Bun B).mp3

DJ Troublemaker / King Fantastic
Punk / Funk / Crunk
From: Los Angeles, Calif.
Band MySpace
Colors (Ice T cover).mp3

Best Coast
Surf / Pop / Gospel
From: Los Angeles, Calif.
Band MySpace
Far Away.mp3

Katelyn Dawn
Indie / Pop / Acoustic
From: Toronto, Canada
Band MySpace
Puzzle Pieces.mp3

Luna is Honey
Pop / Rock / R&B
From: Los Angeles, Calif.
Band MySpace
Who Wouldn’t.mp3

Lisa Jaeggi
Soul / Folk / Freestyle
From: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Band MySpace
Oh Lady You Shot Me!.mp3
~~~~~

(pictures, top-to-bottom: Dead Weather, MIA, The Like, Lana Del Ray, Best Coast)

Labels: "alternative", acousticness, blues, covers, electronic, folk, funk, garage rock, glam, hip-hop, indie, Jack White, pop muzik, RnB, rock

posted by aikin @ 6:02 PM 1 Comments

Music from My Mailbox

There is, if I say so myself, some pretty high-power stuff in this purge of my mailbox. Big names like Julian Casablancas, MIA, and Atari Teenage Riot don’t usually go to the blogs to promote their wares. I like it.

Speaking of MIA, “Born Free” is sort of unusual territory for this blog. I liked “Paper Planes” – the mix of the Clash, gunfire, cash registers, and MIA’s original style made it interesting and new. “Born Free” continues in a similar vein with an intermingling of styles – rock, hip-hop, etc. Also, the video, if you haven’t seen that, is worth your time. I’m sure her intention is some deeper message, but it’s like a more violent version of the South Park “Gingers” episodes. You can see it on her MySpace.

Some other key tracks: Semi Precious Weapons seem to be some sort of mad mash up of Hanoi Rocks and Lady Gaga. Whether these guys can extend the act into a career remains to be seen, but “Magnetic Baby” is a glam-ish song that isn’t going to make your head hurt.

Scott Morgan is a Detroit rock legend whose band The Rationals had the MC5 open for them and almost landed a young Iggy Pop as their drummer. He also formed Sonic’s Rendezvous with Fred “Sonic” Smith and Scott Asheton. “Fallin’ For You” continues the legend with a nice slice of Motown rock ‘n’ soul.

And I gotta show a little local love – AluKarD come from here in Miami. Don’t let the “rock / hip-hop” tags fool you: There’s no Limp Bizkit going on here.

As always, follow the links for more information.

AluKarD
Rock / Alternative / Hip Hop
From: Miami, Fla.
Band MySpace
44 Kaliber Love Letter.mp3

Julian Casablancas
Rock / Alternative
From: New York, N.Y.
Band MySpace
Old Hollywood (live).mp3

MIA
Other
From: London & Southeast U.K.
Band MySpace
Born Free (album version).mp3

The Pipettes
Pop / Powerpop / Glam
From: United Kingdom
Band MySpace
Stop the Music (Will Eastman remix).mp3

Semi Precious Weapons
Visual / Garage / Rock
From: Brooklyn, United States
Band MySpace
Magnetic Baby.mp3

DeVotchKa
Indie / Rock
From: United States
Band MySpace
Clockwise Witness (live).mp3

Scott Morgan
Soul / Rock
From: Ann Arbor, Mich.
Band MySpace
Fallin’ For Ya.mp3

Atari Teenage Riot
Electronica / Experimental / Hardcore
From: Berlin, London, Tokyo, New York
Band MySpace
Activate.mp3

The Joy Formidable
Other / Other / Other
From: United Kingdom
Band MySpace
Whirring.mp3

Inside the Black
Rock
From: Hollywood, Calif.
Band MySpace
Adult Movies.mp3

~~~~~
Pictures, top-to-bottom: AluKarD, Semi Precious Weapons, The Joy Formidable

Labels: "alternative", electronic, garage rock, hip-hop, indie, pop muzik, rock

posted by aikin @ 9:06 PM 0 Comments

Music from My Mailbox

I just realized that the last time any of you heard from me I was on my way out of town to see BugGiRL. For all any of you know I never made it back. But I did. The BugGiRL show was great – they gave it their all despite the small crowd. If you get a chance, definitely you need to see them live.

I’ve really had a lack of posting inspiration lately, so I thought the best solution would be to hit up the mailbox. It turned out there were a few gems hidden there. Straight away I need to mention Long Island’s Roast Beef Curtains. The band’s name alone is hilarious if you realize what exactly a roast beef curtain is. Besides that, there are the lyrics to “5th Base Girl”: “My fifth-base girl likes Diet Coke and glory holes.” I actually laughed out loud the first time I heard that.

The Burnt Ones wear their Johnny Thunders influence proudly, with reverby, echoey vocals and the almost patented Johnny Thunders lo-fi recording style. As a matter of fact, I like these guys so much I tossed in a bonus track, a cover of Motörhead’s “Damage Case,” which was a special Record Store Day download.

A couple of other things: I saw Ke$ha on SNL last night and I wasn’t really impressed. I’m sure she’s this summer’s Kelis. The Clucks’ cover of “Tik Tok” is interesting and at least as good as the original. Also check out garage rockers Thick Shakes for more of that tasty lo-fi rock ‘n’ roll I know you love.

As always, follow the links for more information

Thick Shakes
Garage / Punk / Pop
From: Jamaica Plain, Mass.
Band MySpace
(Baby) You’re a Starfish.mp3

Midnite Theory
Alternative / Hip Hop / Other
From: Los Angeles, Calif.
Band MySpace
Angel On Sunset.mp3
** now with correct links! **

Clucks
Indie / Rock / Garage
From: Seattle, Wash.
Band MySpace
Tik Tok (Ke$ha cover).mp3

The Roast Beef Curtains
Reggae / Dub / Punk
From: Long Island, N.Y.
Band MySpace
5th Base Girl.mp3

The One AM Radio
New Wave
From: Los Feliz, Calif.
Band MySpace
Credible Threats.mp3

Norman
Indie / Folk / Rock
From: Willamette Valley, Ore.
Band MySpace
Hell, If I Love.mp3

Terese Taylor
Experimental / Black Metal / Folk Rock
From: San Francisco, Calif.
Band MySpace
My Shine, Doesn’t Shine.mp3

The Futureheads
New Wave / Indie
From: Sunderland, UK
Band MySpace
Struck Dumb.mp3

Burnt Ones
Minimalist / Psychedelic / Rock
From: Indianapolis, Ind.
Band MySpace
Gonna Listen to T-Rex (All Night Long).mp3
Bonus: Damage Case (Motörhead cover).mp3

~~~~~
(pictures, top-to-bottom: Thick Shakes, The Roast Beef Curtains, Terese Taylor)

Labels: acousticness, covers, folk, garage rock, indie, new wave, pop muzik, rock

posted by aikin @ 1:29 PM 2 Comments

Music from My Mailbox

Wow. I just can’t get the motivation or inspiration lately to post. I look through my CDs and the stuff on my computer and think, Nah, that’s all been done. Then I look through the 100-plus emails clogging my inbox and think, There’s gotta be something interesting in there. So out of those hundred-some emails, this is what I culled. Can you see why I’m not feeling too inspired these days?

My pick of the litter this go-round is Univox’s “Pi,” which I think I had attempted to post before but there was a problem with the link they sent me. Whatever the issue, I’m glad it showed up again, because it’s a rockin’ little number.

A song I almost passed on is Marc Robillard’s “Butterscotch High.” I’m glad I didn’t. I don’t know much about Marc, but there’s something about this song that I really like and it reminds me of someone else, but I can’t quite put my finger on who.

And just to mix things up a bit, I also want you to check out Dominique Young Unique. This is something you might hear thumping in your local strip club this summer.

As always, follow the links for more information

Science Fiction Theater
Rock / Indie / Melodramatic Popular Song
From: Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.
Band MySpace
Gasoline.mp3

Marc Robillard
Pop / Rock / Acoustic
From: Venice, Calif.
Band MySpace
Butterscotch High (acoustic).mp3

Univox
Glam / Soul / Folk
From: Philadelphia, Penn.
Band MySpace
Pi.mp3

Thought
Rock / 2-step / Funk
From: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Band MySpace
The Hardest Thing.mp3

Lloyd’s Garage
Rock / Indie / Blues
From: SF Bay Area, Calif.
Band MySpace
Return to Sender.mp3

Hunters & Runners
Rock / Indie
From: New York, N.Y.
Band MySpace
Sociology.mp3

Dominique Young Unique
R’n’B / Hip-Hop / Electronic
From: Tampa, Fla.
Band MySpace
Show My Ass.mp3

~~~~~
(pictures, top-to-bottom: Science Fiction Theater, Lloyd's Garage)

Labels: acousticness, electronic, hip-hop, indie, pop muzik, RnB, rock

posted by aikin @ 12:48 PM 0 Comments

Music from My Mailbox

Happy SXSW week to you and yours. Once again I will not be attending, although I recently wondered if I could have gotten a record label or PR firm to cover my airfare and bar tabs while I whore myself for whatever bands they have in attendance. On the other hand, I harbor a dislike for much “indie” music and can see where it may have ended up as a “Fear & Loathing on 6th Street” type of occasion. “We were somewhere over Louisiana when the drugs began to take hold...”

Anyway, as you might guess, my inbox was full of notices about appearances at SXSW. Probably the majority of the bands in today’s post will be there, but I can’t be arsed to dig up schedules for you. If you like the band and you’re going to be in Austin this week, I’m sure you’ll figure it out.

This is a pretty small inbox purge because a lot of the stuff I received was electronica or whiney, self-indulgent indie/emo stuff or some mash-up/remix of the two genres, and I’m really not in the mood to hear that.

The top stuff today is easily The Choke and The Ex-Girlfriend’s Club. Both bands bring the garage rock sound that I so enjoy. Also, if you think back to my last mailbox post, you’ll recollect Pack A.D. Well, as the fates would have it, The Choke are on tour with Pack A.D. You’ll definitely want to check out that bill if they come to a town near you. The Koot Hoomi track comes from a Hall and Oates tribute album the group did. It’s called The Dark Side of Hall and Oates and is bizarre enough that it warranted inclusion here.

As always, follow the links for more information.

The Choke
Garage / Punk / Soul
From: New York, N.Y.
Band MySpace
Tuff Kids.mp3

Shaka Ponk
Rock / Electro / Experimental
From: Berlin, Germany
Band MySpace
Do.mp3

Cary Ann Hearst
Folk Rock / Southern Rock / Roots Music
From: Charlotte, S.C.
Band MySpace
Are You Ready to Die.mp3

April Smith
Melodramatic Popular Song / Pop / Folk Rock
From: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Band MySpace
Movie Loves a Screen.mp3

Koot Hoomi
Experimental / Indie / Acoustic
From: Tempe, Ariz.
Band MySpace
Maneater (Hall and Oates cover).mp3

The Ex-Girlfriend’s Club
Garage / Rock / Glam
From: Portland, Ore.
Band MySpace
Devil Eyes.mp3

~~~~~
(Pictures, top-to-bottom: The Choke, April Smith)

Labels: acousticness, covers, electronic, folk, garage rock, glam, indie, pop muzik, rock

posted by aikin @ 12:40 PM 0 Comments

Music from My Mailbox

I figure the last day of the month is as good a time as any to dump out the mailbox. Start fresh next month and all that.

A lot of stuff from bands that are going to be at SXSW next month. I’ll be not attending again this year, so who plays or doesn’t play isn’t going to much affect me. Just send me good music if you want me to post it. Kthx.

I’m gonna jump right in with my pick of the litter. The Pack A.D., from the home of the 2010 Winter Olympics, are a duet – guitar and drums a la Jack and Meg – and take a similar, garage/blues approach to their music. Singer Becky Black has garnered more than a few comparisons to a certain legendary 60's whiskey-throated blues shouter. I really liked this band and look forward to hearing more of their music.

A couple of other things that are interesting: Patrick Bower’s “The Dark Lord (of Love)” has a weird, dark sound to it and made me want to hear it more than once. Moneybrother’s “Born Under a Bad Sign” is another of those tracks I almost passed on, but, after a couple of listens, decided to include. It’s a sort of poppy, dancey, type of thing. Maybe like something from the first Killers album or something. Just know that it’s not a cover of the Albert King classic.

The very last song on today’s list, “Sleepwalking,” I decided to include sight unseen. That is to say, I didn’t even care if the music was up to my usual rigorous standards. Everything Is Made In China, or EIMIC as their friends call them, come from Russia. When was the last time you heard a Russian pop band? Exactly. So they get a mention just for that.

As always, follow the links for more information.

Blunt Mechanic
Indie / Folk / Punk
From: Seattle, Wash.
Band MySpace
Less Beat.mp3

Becca
Rock / Pop / Acoustic
From: Portland, Ore.
Band MySpace
Kickin’ & Screamin’.mp3

Nick Jaina
Folk / Pop / Indie
From: Portland, Ore.
Band MySpace
Sleep Child.mp3

Cast Spells
Acoustic / Country / Folk
From: Chicago, Ill.
Band MySpace
Pioneer Scalps.mp3

Patrick Bower
Indie / Folk / Pop
From: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Band MySpace
The Dark Lord (of Love).mp3

The Pack A.D.
Garage / Rock / Punk
From: Vancouver, Canada
Band MySpace
Crazy.mp3

Resonant Soul
Alternative / Rock / Indie
From: Toledo, Ohio
Band MySpace
House of the Rising Sun (Animals cover).mp3

Velvet Davenport
Psychedelic / Pop
From: Minneapolis, Minn.
Band MySpace
Get Out.mp3

The Dig
Rock / Indie / Pop
From: New York, N.Y.
Band MySpace
You’re Already Gone.mp3

Shellshag
Punk / Rock
From: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Band MySpace
Resilient Bastard.mp3

Friday Mile
Indie / Rock / Pop
From: Seattle, Wash.
Band MySpace
FYI.mp3

Moneybrother
Rock / Pop
From: Stockholm, Sweden
Band MySpace
Born Under a Bad Sign.mp3

EIMIC
Rock / Other
From: Moscow, Russian Federation
Band MySpace
Sleepwalking.mp3

~~~~~
(Pictures, top-to-bottom: Becca, The Pack A.D., Shellshag)

Labels: "alternative", covers, folk, garage rock, indie, pop muzik, pop-punk

posted by aikin @ 12:02 PM 1 Comments

Music From My Mailbox

Say you’ve got four lanes of traffic, all going the same direction. The far outside lane exits, the next one over has the option to exit or go straight. What the hell is that causes Miami drivers in the two inside lanes to come to a complete stop? During my commute I go through these traffic jams daily and I cannot, for the life of me, understand why it happens. Please, if you can explain this mystery, drop me a note.

In other more relevant news, there turned out to be some pretty decent things in my mailbox. Particularly, I want to mention Acrassicauda. These guys were featured in the 2007 film Heavy Metal in Baghdad. Acrassicauda formed in Iraq, fled that country because of the war, first going to Syria then to Turkey. Earlier this year they were resettled in the U.S. with assistance from a relief agency. The song here, “Garden of Stones” will be on their debut EP, Only the Dead See the End of the War, which is scheduled for release in March.

A couple other things worth mentioning: The Getdown! offers up the oft-covered “Leave My Kitten Alone,” a tasty slice of garage rock from their forthcoming EP. I also sorta liked the tracks from The Stone Foxes and I’m Not A Band. There’s also some other pretty decent things here. Have a listen and see what you think.

As always, follow the links for more information.

Acrassicauda
Metal / Rock / Death Metal
From: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Band MySpace
Garden Of Stones.mp3

Bear Ceuse
Rock
From: St. Louis, Mo.
Band MySpace
American Wit.mp3

iChoRa
Alternative / Rock
From: Western Australia, Australia
Band MySpace
Lunafire.mp3

Codeine Velvet Club
Alternative
From: United Kingdom
Band MySpace
I Am the Resurrection (Stone Roses cover).mp3

Le Corps Mince de Françoise (LCMDF)
Pop / Pop / Pop
From: Helsinki, Finland
Band MySpace
Something Golden (Zebra and Snake remix).mp3

Zambri
Rock / Soul / Other
From: New York, New York
Band MySpace
From the Starts.mp3

The New Fidelity
Powerpop / Soul
From: Long Beach, Calif.
Band MySpace
2nd Once in a Lifetime Girl.mp3

Blackmarket
Rock / Indie
From: Lake Havasu, Ariz.
Band MySpace
Tongue Twister Typo.mp3

The Stone Foxes
Rock / Blues / Soul
From: San Francisco, Calif.
Band MySpace
Sweep a Road.mp3

Gooding
Rock
From: Los Angeles, Calif.
Band MySpace
Make the Devil Cry.mp3

Church
Indie
From: Portland, Ore.
Band MySpace
Opposite People.mp3

The Getdown!
Rock / Rock / Rock
From: Denver, Colo.
Band MySpace
Leave My Kitten Alone (Little Willie John cover).mp3

I’m Not A Band
Electro / Indie
From: Berlin / Leipzig, Germany
Band MySpace
Crazy.mp3

~~~~~
pictures, top-to-bottom: Acrassicauda, LCMDF, The Stone Foxes, I’m Not A Band

Labels: "alternative", electronic, garage rock, indie, metal, pop muzik, rock, soul

posted by aikin @ 6:17 PM 1 Comments

Say It Ain't So, Lily

Gossip around the tabloids has it that Lily Allen is chucking the music biz. There is no truth to the rumors that she is giving it up to be with me.

Lily on Wednesday told the BBC that she plans on taking “one or two years off from recording and performing music.” Her last scheduled performance is a March show with Dizzee Rascal at the O2 Arena in London. She also told the Beeb’s Radio 1 that she plans on setting up a fashion shop with her sister and working with new bands. “I’m just going to concentrate on doing some behind the scenes sort of stuff,” she said.

I’ve got say that Lily Allen taking a break from music will have no major impact on my life. However, I can admit to having been a casual fan since I saw her on Saturday Night Live a couple of years ago. I thought she was adorable looking and I kinda dug her infectious, pumped-up, ska-type music. And I have a weakness for girls with British accents.

Over the last couple of years I’ve picked up a handful of her songs here and there, but I never got around to buying a full album. I think what scared me away were tunes that veered away from ska and more into Pink territory. To be honest though, I haven’t really hated anything I’ve heard from Lily Allen.

Anyway, to see her off, I’ve rounded up a few live and non-LP tracks. And Lily, if you get bored with all this new found free time, there’s always a chip butty waiting for you in Apt. 104.

Everybody’s Changing.mp3 ~ Keane cover – non-LP
Naïve.mp3 ~ live, BBC Radio 1
Oh My God.mp3 ~ Kaiser Chiefs cover – non-LP
LDN.mp3 ~ live, 9:30 Club, Washington, D.C., Feb. 16, 2007
Blank Expression.mp3 ~ Specials cover – live, 9:30 Club, Washington, D.C., Feb. 16, 2007.

Labels: covers, live music, pop muzik, ska, unplugged

posted by aikin @ 7:00 AM 1 Comments

Tony Rome

The other night I happened to watch the 1967 Frank Sinatra classic, Tony Rome. The film was interesting in a couple of ways: First, it features Sinatra the way that I’d grown up imagining him: Tough, quick with a one-liner, and having to always dodge women who are non-stop throwing themselves at him.

The other interesting aspect is that Tony Rome shows a Miami completely different, yet remarkably the same, as the Miami I know. I laughed when I saw some of the Miami Beach structures in the movie that probably weren’t new then and are still standing today, only now they actually are home to the sort of low-lives the fictional PI was chasing 40 years ago.

The Tony Rome title track is ridiculously catchy and poppy, while being cool in a retro, Tarantino kind of way. Steven Van Zandt has it in rotation on his Underground Garage channel on SiriusXM radio and I figured if it’s cool enough for Little Steven it’ll probably do for this site. Besides, it’s been stuck in my head since I watched the movie.

Frank’s daughter Nancy sang the title track for the movie; her second go with a movie theme song, following on her earlier success with the title track for You Only Live Twice. Lee Hazelwood, who wrote most of Nancy’s earlier hits, also penned this sultry classic.

Also, just for fun, I’m including a not-too-bad cover of the Beatles’ “Run for Your Life,” which Nancy recorded for her 1966 album Boots.

Tony Rome.mp3
Run for Your Life (Beatles cover).mp3

Labels: Beatles, covers, movies, pop muzik

posted by aikin @ 6:52 PM 0 Comments

Trippin' with Toni Basil

You know how sometimes, in old movies, the credits roll as the film opens? Well, I was watching Easy Rider (1969, my friends – it’s officially an old movie now) the other day and as the opening credits went across the screen, I saw a familiar name: Toni Basil.

I can’t honestly say if I knew she was in the movie and had forgotten, or if it came as a bit of a surprise. While I know she is a choreographer of some renown, to me, Toni Basil is, was, and always will be the “Oh, Mickey, you’re so fine” girl.

In case you didn’t know – or like me, you maybe forgot – Toni plays “Mary” in Easy Rider. Near the end of the film, when Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda finally arrive in New Orleans, they visit a brothel where they meet Mary and another girl, Karen (played by Karen Black). The four of them go to the Mardi Gras parade, and then visit a cemetery, where they drop acid. In your Mr. Skin moment, there is a little bit of Toni Basil nudity here. There is also an interestingly filmed representation of the group’s trip.

Easy Rider was probably Toni’s biggest role; prior to that she had a few parts where she was credited – if she was credited at all – in roles such as “Dancer” or “Pajama Girl.” She also had a few small roles following Easy Rider, mainly in classics such as Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood; and Angel III: The Final Chapter. I think it’s safe to say Toni found much more success as a choreographer.

But let’s not forget Toni’s musical career. Her 1982 album Word of Mouth and the smash hit “Mickey” firmly established her as one of the greatest one-hit wonders ever. Something else I didn’t know about Toni Basil until I started researching around: Most of the members of Devo played on the Word of Mouth disk. If you can believe what you read, Toni and Devo bass player Jerry Casale were dating at the time and Toni had been a long-time Devo fan.

One of the songs Toni chose for her album was “Be Stiff,” which was a Devo rarity. The song was initially released on their 1978 EP, Be Stiff. Devo wouldn’t officially release the song again until their 1990 compilation disk Greatest Misses. Toni’s is a fun version, with her pop vocals over Devo’s edgy new wave instrumentation.

Be Stiff.mp3

Labels: covers, movies, new wave, pop muzik

posted by aikin @ 5:00 PM 1 Comments

Music from My Mailbox

My first post of October – five days in – and my first mailbox purge. The inbox filled up insanely quick over the last couple of weeks. I was already trying to decide whether I should dump everything at once or split it into a couple of posts. But after I culled through everything, deleting the invites to things I can’t attend and the music you don’t want to hear, I was left with this single, decent-sized post.

A lot of this music veers toward the “indie” side of things. I’ve mentioned before that, as a general rule, I don’t care much for that genre. Using that admittedly flexible guideline, I’ve done my best to not subject you to a lot of things I wouldn’t listen to myself.

A couple of recommendations – for those who don’t want to sample a little of each: I like Red Cortez. “Fell on the Floor” has a sorta-U2 feel, for part of the song, then other parts go in another direction altogether. The Electric Tickle Machine, in addition to having a cool name, is a decent sounding psychedelic-cum-garage band from New York’s East Village. I also dig “Bare Hands, Bare Feet” from The Bright Hour Social Hour. It’s an up tempo rocker with a groovy riff.

But really, you may as well check out all the music; it won’t cost you anything extra and you’re likely to find something else you like even more.

As always, follow the links for more information.

City Light
Indie / Alternative / Rock
From: San Francisco, Calif.
Band Myspace
Apologies.mp3

The Bright Light Social Hour
Rock
From: Austin, Texas
Band Myspace
Bare Hands, Bare Feet.mp3

Chris Kirby
Blues / Pop / Soul
From: St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
Band Myspace
Don’t Forget About Me.mp3

My Tiger My Timing
Pop / Idol / Visual
From: London, U.K.
Band Myspace
I am the Sound (Hook And The Twin Remix).mp3

Real Ones
Indie / Folk / Rock
From: Bergen, Norway
Band Myspace
Every Dog Has His Day.mp3

Electric Tickle Machine
Psychedelic / Garage / Pop
From: e. vill, N.Y.
Band Myspace
Gimme Money.mp3

Loch Lomond
Folk / Experimental / Pop
From: Portland, Ore.
Band Myspace
Wax and Wire.mp3

Mau
Electro / Alternative / New Wave
From: Lisbon, Portugal
Band Myspace
Toboggan.mp3

Lackthereof
Emotronic / Folk / Healing & Easy Listening
From: Portland, Ore.
Band Myspace
Safely in Jail.mp3

Red Cortez
Other
From: California
Band Myspace
Fell on the Floor.mp3

Flood of Red
Rock
From: Glasgow, Scotland U.K.
Band Myspace
Paper Lungs.mp3

~~~~~
(pictures, top-to-bottom: The Bright Light Social Hour, Electric Tickle Machine, Red Cortez

Labels: "alternative", electronic, garage rock, indie, pop muzik, rock

posted by aikin @ 9:26 PM 0 Comments

Music from My Mailbox

Oops – looks like it’s been a couple of weeks since I purged the mailbox. There was a lot of stuff in there, but probably half of it was either random PR things or music you probably don’t want to hear.

From the surviving half I managed to pull several decent items. Of particular note is Spider Problem, a rock band out of El Lay. They are without a doubt my pick of this post, with a sound that kinda sorta reminds me of X.

Another interesting band is The Bad Dogs. The Bad Dogs are fronted by two teenage girls (one is 16 years old and the other is 18 years old), who, rather than going the power pop route a la Avril Lavigne, they’ve instead turned out a tasty little garage rock number, “Power to My Amp.”

A couple of bands are making encore appearances in my mailbox: Amanda Zelina just released her version of “Try a Little Tenderness,” the oft-recorded track made big in 1966 by Otis Redding. Also returning with another track from their soon-to-be-released debut is garage super group The Almighty Defenders.

As always, follow the links for more information.

The Bad Dogs
Rock / Soul / Indie
From: Brunoy, Ile-de-France, France
Band MySpace
Power to My Amp.mp3

The Wooden Birds
Indie
From: Austin, Texas
Band MySpace
Hometown Fantasy.mp3

Sean Bones
Indie / Pop
From: Cobble Hill, U.S.
Band MySpace
Dance Hall (Bodega Girls remix).mp3

Electric Tickle Machine
Psychedelic / Garage / Pop
From: e. vill, NY
Band MySpace
Part of Me.mp3

The Antlers
Indie / Ambient
From: Brooklyn, NY
Band MySpace
Two.mp3

Tiny Vipers
Gothic / Acoustic / Ambient
From: Seattle, Wash.
Band MySpace
Development.mp3

Spider Problem
Rock / Rock / Rock
From: Los Angeles, Calif.
Band MySpace
Bullet.mp3

The Radiant
Rock / Indie
From: New York, NY
Band MySpace
I Don’t Need a Reason.mp3

The Almighty Defenders
Rock / Garage
From: Beverly Hills, Calif.
Band MySpace
Cone of Light.mp3

Amanda Zelina
Pop / Soul / Alternative
From: swamp water, Canada
Band MySpace
Try a Little Tenderness.mp3

Boat
Indie / Pop / Soul
From: Seattle, Wash.
Band MySpace
Prince of Tacoma.mp3

Logan Lynn
Indie / Pop / Emotronic
From: Portland, Ore.
Band MySpace
Feed Me to the Wolves.mp3

~~~~~
(Pictures, top-to-bottom: The Bad Dogs, Electric Tickle Machine, Spider Problem, Amanda Zelina)

Labels: "alternative", garage rock, indie, pop muzik, remix, rock, soul

posted by aikin @ 12:14 PM 0 Comments