These Chinese Zodiac singles that Fucked Up put out are amazing. The fifth in the series, “Year of the Tiger,” (which is out February 6) is a 15 minute long, sprawling punk epic. Pretty much what we’ve come to expect from these guys. And it is awesome. Stream it below.
When I first heard Thought for Food it changed something about the way we could define something as music. This was weirdo outsider sound collage, but it packed all the wallop of emotional rock music, and I would fight anyone who didn’t recognize what The Books were doing was, in fact, songwriting.
But now Nick Zammuto has announced that The Books are no more. Their four studio albums - most recently the apropos The Way Out - are all we’ll get. I am grateful that I got to see them live. It was at the Ladies Literary Club in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
I am also grateful that Nick Zammuto is back with a new band. It’s called, er, Zammuto. Less collagy and more songy, but the songs available so far have proven to be pretty amazing.
Zammuto said, in an interview with Pitchfork:
Everyone’s got a brass robot in their lives that they want to tear a new one, right? I had a frustrating couple years for sure, but these songs are more universal. Mostly they’re about making that difficult decision to cut your losses and move on, and committing to the new reality 100%.
I once saw Arpad Miklos getting out of the subway. But I had never, until watching this video, seen him dressed up as a sexy Freddy Krueger. This song and video from Perfume Genius is all about not wanting to let someone all the way in to avoid them not loving and accepting the full person you are. At the same time, it is so stripped down (the song and the two stars of the video) that you have to see the bare bones of what’s there.
“Whenever possible, I like just keeping the very first impression of an idea, the first take of something. You very rarely get to do that because the recording quality is below standard,” says Rossen. “It’s very liberating to just leave it.”
Grizzly Bear/Department of Eagles cool guy and multi-instrumentalist Daniel Rossen is releasing a solo EP! It’s called Silent Hour/Golden Mile. Which is a pretty cool name for a record. The first single is called “Saint Nothing.” It’s minimal, slow, but super powerful and effective.
The above quote comes from Warp Records’ site. Rossen goes on to say, “When you spend so much time touring around, you can lose perspective on what you’re trying to do. All the sudden, I had no idea what to do or what to make or anything…These songs were a way for me to figure that out again, getting my legs back.”
Here’s the track list for Silent Hour/Golden Mile which is out in late March.
1 - Up On High
2 - Silent Song
3 - Return To Form
4 - Saint Nothing (listen above)
5 - Golden Mile
Nehru Jackets is the new mixtape from Himanshu Suri (formerly Heems, but now says that name is reserved only for people he went to school with). Das Racist cohort Kool A.D. released his Palm Wine Drinkard earlier this month, and now it’s Himanshu’s turn to release something maybe a little more cohesive. I have been looking forward to this tape for a whole. It features all the big names in the little hip hop world: Childish Gambino, Danny Brown, Despot, et al. It’s got a few songs we’ve heard before - “NYC Cops,” “Swate,” “Womyn” - but a bunch of new stuff.
Probably one of the more clever collections of 25 songs you’ll hear this month.
I am usually about a day behind on things that come up on the internet. And in a world where that already means these day-old things are obsolete, that almost makes me some kind of internet archaeologist. This is partially because most of my reading of blogs and twitters is on my phone, and I am usually hesitant to click links or don’t want to subject the other people around me to the songs I want to listen to. It’s also because I’m a little skeptical of things. I don’t really like the disposable nature of buzz bands. So if I’m going to like something, I like to know that I’m actually going to like it. Marc Maron said something about someone telling him he was “late to the party” on getting into Arcade Fire. And he said he was glad to be late to the party. It meant something more somehow.
All this to say: I finally listened to the new Shins track, “Simple Song.” And it’s pretty good. My interest in The Shins waned after Chutes Too Narrow and the whole Garden State thing. Again, maybe as an aversion to buzziness. But now I am ready to fall back in love with this band. “Simple Song” is that song that makes me ready for this. It’s got sort of bigger-than-necessary production for a song that could be supported on just a one man singer/songwriter platform, but I am not going to hold it against The Shins if they want to sound huge. Excited to hear the rest of the record.
Did you ever feel like there was something a little off about kids who signed up to be on a band’s street team? Maybe they are just a little too willing to go a little too far for promotion’s sake? That’s the idea behind the new Tom Scharpling-directed video for Real Estate’s “Easy” video. While normally listening to this record makes me think of sprawling suburban landscapes, or shorelines on gray winter days, it’s nice to see the tunes be paired with something a little bit more light-hearted, while still perfectly befitting.
At The Drive-In!
Refused!
Godspeed You! Black Emperor!
M83!
Radiohead!
Everyone! This is our year for Coachella! The odds of me traveling across the country to see a festival are still very, very slim. But this lineup has made it the most tempting of any fest of any years past.
Apparently Ricky Rubio is a basketball player for the Washington Wizards. Dan Lopatin is sort of like a wizard of electronic soundscapes and synth textures. (Check out what I did there!) This new OPN song is called “Rubio” and is a slow-burner. You can put it on and watch slow motion basketball replays, or just practice wizard spells if that is more your bag.
I’ve been awake pretty much every day in 2012 so far, so it’s not really the Year of Hibernation. But Youth Lagoon’s record still jams. And this creeped-out video for the song “July” will also help to keep you up at night with worry. Also: bloody noses.
Youth Lagoon - July from Tyler T Williams on Vimeo.
