DELTRON 3030 RECOMMENDED: Fuck Buttons – ‘Tarot Sport’
Their 2008 debut Street Horrrsing delivered a nice hypnotic mix of electronic textures that went widely ignored by the music community. I certainly could not blame it on their moniker. This band EASILY gets the award for best band name ever (sorry Hoobastank…you never had a chance). No, I blamed it on the fuzzed out screamo vocals that they interjected into their songs at the eight minute mark. Yeah, they like to go big dog on their song lengths. I guess that’d be strike two for many people.
The thing is some of those epic jams were pretty fantastic. “Sweet Love for Planet Earth” from their debut was one of my favorite songs of last year….till the vocals kicked in. I think they heard my complaints because these guys have stepped their game up. Their second release, Tarot Sport, delivers more of their signature sound, but now sans vocals! The less is more approach pays off as the music is streamlined and the band makes greater use of their electronic rhythms.
For those of you who didn’t download their debut and are looking for one sentence of pop culture imagery to describe their sound, here it is: Picture Battles sent into the future to go play a concert for Skynet.
This is either going to be a big hit with you or a big miss. There is no in between for this sound. That said do I like this CD? Yes. Are they any more accessible now? Ummm let me put it this way I don’t see this album’s lead single getting played before the start of the World Series next year. Maybe they should have gotten Alicia Keys to sing some hooks.
Highlights: “The Lisbon Maru,” “Olympians,” “Space Mountain,”
DELTRON 3030 RECOMMENDED: WALE ‘Attention Deficit’
After pushing out three solid mixtapes today is the day for Wale’s proper major label debut…and he saved some of his best stuff for it. Unlike what was previously reported the producer list is Kanye and P Diddy free. Instead Wale reached out to David Andrew Sitek of TV on the Radio to bring that raw TVOTR vibe to a new audience. . That sound is always welcome in my book. Beyond my TVOTR man crush, he’s a sensible producer choice here since Wale would seem to be trying to position himself as the next great introspective alternative rapper. You can almost buy that sentiment…but only if you dismiss the obligatory Neptunes track (“Let It Loose”) and the instantly accessible panderings of the lead single “Chillin” (featuring Lady Gaga). I can’t fault an artist for loading up his lead single with tons of hooks and honey. It’s where it goes after that what truly matters. Once you get past “Chillin” you’ll find some great beats (“Pretty Girls”) and some even greater social commentary (“90210″). Culture eviscerating lyrics coupled w/ great pop culture references and the occasional guest vocal are the building blocks to a great hip hop album. However what really sells it for me is what is NOT present. That would be the lack of skits. I’m not sure who ever gave rappers the idea that skits were a good thing to pepper in between songs but I think I can speak for everyone when I say “No Mas Por Favor”. Not even David Gray is that painful to listen to. When rocking your ipod on shuffle just about the last thing you want to hear is “The $20 Sack Pyramid”. If i wanted to force myself to hear unfunny hip hop artists channel their inner groundlings I’d go ahead and catch reruns of Wild N’ Out on MTV.
Highlights: “Triumph,” “Pretty Girls,” “90210,” “TV In The Radio”
Guilty Pleasure Highlight: “Chillin’”
DELTRON 3030 RECOMMENDED: Rain Machine – Rain Machine
Checking out the Pixies schedule for LA I saw that they had three dates coming up on their “Doolittle” (yep a pixies show where they play Doolittle from top to bottom) tour
11/04 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Palladium ^
11/05 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Palladium %
11/06 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Palladium *
Three dates in November that would appear at first glance to be interchangeable. It’s not until you find out what the characters next to the venue symbolize that you realize the smart buy was the November 6th show.
^ = w/ No Age
% = w/ Black Gold
* = w/ Rain Machine
Not only is it a Friday show but it also has Rain Machine as an opener. For those of you who don’t know Rain Machine is the moniker for TV on the Radio’s Kyp Malone’s side project. I’m a big TVOTR fan so I’m a bit biased here when I say anyone who chose 11/04 or 11/05 is a huge sucker. Rain Machine, much like the Iran side project, is an outlet for Kyp Malone to stretch his TVOTR wings and get more soulful..if that’s even humanly possible. Finally Kyp’s beard matches his sound. I mean that as a compliment. I’ve got nothing but praise for this album. Shockingly Rain Machine isn’t getting the stellar reviews that I’d expect it to…unless of course “unbalanced” and “self indulgent” are hip new adjectives when describing your love for music. Stepping away from my TVOTR man crush I suppose I can understand where they are coming from as three of the songs check in at around or over the eight minute mark…but that hardly seems like something to complain about. It would appear that TVOTR’s past successes are causing reviewers to have limitless expectations moving forward. Personally, for me, if an album has 4-5 killer songs than the album is a rousing success. Rain Machine meets and exceeds that quota. Just don’t expect heavy fuzz rocking jams. “Give Blood,” the lead single, is the most familiar track for a TVOTR fan which is a smart move. Rope the kids in with familiarity and then after that switch gears and develop a tracklist consisting of heartfelt falsetto singing accompanied by some serious churchy vibes, old school finger plucking and some Dylan-esque lyrics thrown in for good measure.
Highlights: “Give Blood,” “Smiling Black Faces,” “New Last Name,” “Leave The Lights On”
DELTRON 3030 RECOMMENDED – Karen O and the Kids – “Where the Wild Things Are”
![(Karen O and the Kids) Where the Wild Things Are [A]](http://www.intraffik.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/Karen-O-and-the-Kids-Where-the-Wild-Things-Are-A.jpg "(Karen O and the Kids) Where the Wild Things Are [A]")
When I first saw the trailer for “Where the Wild Things Are” my initial reaction was that there was no way in hell I could bring my five year old niece and four year old nephew to see it. The three year old nephew was having a hard enough transition from diapers that I didn’t need the other two regressing and crapping themselves from sheer fear. My other thought was never had I heard a song match up so well with a trailer’s content. The Arcade Fire’s “Wake Up” was an inspired choice that hopefully will begin a trend of cutting trailers to new songs instead of regurgitating overused staples like “Salisbury Hill“, “Heat of the Moment, and “Under Pressure”.
Quit being so lazy, people.
“Wake Up” evoked such an emotion out of me that I was downright giddy with the prospect of a full Arcade Fire soundtrack for this movie. Sadly, all you can do is imagine. We’ll never know what could have been since The Arcade Fire instead chose to score Richard Kelly’s sure to fail “The Box“. Truth be told they never really had a chance at scoring WTWTA as Spike Jonze tapped his then girlfriend at the time, Karen O, to man the scoring duties. If you were dating Karen O would you cross her? I didn’t think so. Perhaps that is what makes her such an inspired choice. Yes, Karen O is an odd selection as she is just about the last person I’d let supervise small children but she knows it!. She makes up for whatever maternal instincts she is clearly void of by toning down her her rocker YYYs black widow alter ego and embraces her childlike whimsy. It translates well and never feels forced. Of course, having a bunch of kids belt out your choruses can only help you seem more motherly. Perhaps Britney Spears should look into that, but I’m guessing Child Services would frown upon some toddlers chanting “Womanizer” over and over again.
Besides the actual kids on the CD, Karen O’s band accompaniment, named “The Kids” is a pretty impressive gathering, comprised of her band mates from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs plus indie favorites Deerhunter’s Bradford Cox, Liars’ Aaron Hemphill, The Dead Weather’s Dean Fertita, and Jack Lawrence from The Raconteurs. Karen O’s version of Fisher Prices’ My First Indie Soundtrack assures you that all the kids who go see this will be the coolest ones on their block. I’ve already sent this to my brother in the hopes that his kids will respond favorably to it and it will replace their current infatuation, Lady GaGa. Otherwise, If things don’t change my nephew will be a pants pooping poker face crooning nursery schooler next year and I just can’t have that.
Note: On top of all of those Pitchfork approved artists the hipster quotient is raised by including a cover of Daniel Johnston’s “Worried Shoes”.
Highlights: “All is Love,” “Worried Shoes,” “Hideaway”
DELTRON 3030′S ONE FROM THE VAULT: Harry Nilsson – All Time Greatest Hits
While re watching Goodfellas on bluray I noticed that May 11th, 1980 was a particularly good day for Henry Hill’s car stereo.
“Jump into the Fire” by Harry Nilsson - At the beginning of the helicopter sequence.
“Memo from Turner” by The Rolling Stones - After Henry leaves Jimmy’s with the silencers.
“Magic Bus“ by The Who – When Henry almost has the car accident.
“Jump into the Fire” by Harry Nilsson - (2nd time played) Henry drives his brother home from the hospital.
“Monkey Man” by The Rolling Stones - (2nd time played) Henry drops off the guns at Karen’s mother’s house.
“What Is Life” by George Harrison - When Henry and Karen drive to his cocaine connection’s motel.
“Mannish Boy” by Muddy Waters - When Henry is at Sandy’s place mixing the coke.
My first thought after looking up the artist for “Jump Into the Fire” was “Who the f*ck is Harry Nilsson?” (more…)
DELTRON 3030 RECOMMENDED – DM Stith- Heavy Ghost
Never was there a more appropriately titled LP than David Michael Stith’s Heavy Ghost. Layers of swirling distant backing vocals and haunting keys combine to give this debut CD an eerie and ominous feeling. This is slightly offset by DM Stith’s falsetto that acts as a bridge between the spirit dimension and the real world. Kind of like that fat little midget lady in Poltergeist.
Recorded completely in bedrooms, churches, and kitchens, DM Stith has the ability to both be intimate and Macgyver-ish (one song features Sufjan Stevens playing a stapler, a pair of scissors, a rotary fan, and a Vermont quarter) but is at his finest when he simply sits dawn at the piano and eschews outside assistance as heard on quite possibly the most beautiful song I’ve listened to in 2009, “Braid of Voices”.
Highlights: “Braid of Voices”, “BMB”, “Pity Dance”