Laff without ceasing

Chicago!

More to come

DJ Assault - The return of Terrortec

Music From Around the World: Get Dirty!!!

http://bottomofthemap.blogspot.com/ <-More Southern Rap than you can shake an ass at. Someone put a lot of effort into that so give it a browse

Even if you don't like Rap, at the end of this article, there is a picture of a man in a smoking jacket, kickin back w/ some bears, so you are missing out.

This stuff unironically owns more than any other kind of rap. Let find out why!
In the beginning there was Outkast, then Ludacris then it went away... pause... not. Southern rap started to pop off in the early 90s. The first southern rap group to make it was the Geto Boys. Their music is raw, enjoyable, heady and put rap from south of the border on the map.

"Stylistically, Dirty South is notably different from its northern and western counterparts. Whereas east coast hip hop has historically been associated with complex lyrics and sparse urban beats, contemporary Southern Rap is largely characterized by its upbeat, exuberant, club-friendly tunes, and a simplistic rhythmic lyrical delivery." Pretty good description, leaving out a lot of stuff like Chopped/Screwed, Etc

Songs:

Juvenile- Way before he was telling you to back that ass up, he was yelling about solja rags. Solja Rags
Big Tymers- Famous song, still hits hard. No. 1 Stunna
8Ball&MJG- Two songs from Comin Out Hard. Drops so many gems. Great group; 9 Mil. , N**** like Us <- I love the back and forth from 3:20-4:15
Clipse- Modern yayo rap, done well. They have one of the catchiest vocoder songs out there. Pop Champagne
Dead Prez- Politically charged heady rap from Florida. Hip Hop
Paper Route Gangstaz/Jackie Chain- Sample of some of the chopped/screwed shit from Alabama. Grind Baby , Wood Grain
Lil Boosie- Dancy music that is better than Solja Boi. Refusing to link Loose as a goose tho haha Im That Dude
UGK- So good. Stop listening to Black Eyed Peas and please buy UGK 4 Life. Too many songs to pick from. RIP Pimp C Used To Be , Hard As Hell

If you like any of these, here is a list of artists to build off of.

GEORGIA

Outkast
T.I.
Young Jeezy
Goodie Mob
T-Rock
Pastor Troy

TEXAS

Geto Boys/Scarface
UGK
Slim Thug
Screwed Up Click (notably Lil Keke, Z-Ro, Trae, ESG, Lil Flip, & Fat Pat)
Devin The Dude
5th Ward Boyz

LOUISIANA

No Limit (Master P, Silkk The Shocker, C-Murder, Soulja Slim, Mystikal & Fiend)
Hot Boyz (Juvenile, Lil Wayne, BG, & Turk)
Big Tymers (Birdman & Mannie Fresh)
Trill Entertainment (Lil Boosie & Webbie)
C-Loc
YoungBleed

TENNESSEE

Three Six Mafia
8Ball & MJG
Playa Fly
Project Pat
Gangsta Blac
Yo Gotti

OTHER

Dirty
David Banner
Trick Daddy
Mr. Bigg
Clipse
Nappy Roots

Music From Around the World: Shoegaze!

Shoegaze is coming back in style now, so figured since this is blog is super hip, let me lay down some history for yall!

Once upon a time in the early 90s, there were some British bands who liked to play loud and with a lot of pedals... I mean very loud(induce vomiting loud)/many pedals! The term "shoegazers" was quipped because of the way they stood still and looked at the ground. Then two big bad bullies named Grunge and Britpop came and shit all over the tiny, stationary rock stars; thus ending the reign of Shoegazing.

Although this awesome period of music was shortlived, it produced some really quality records. I will start with the big names and go off from there.

There is no way you can talk about this era without bringing up My Bloody Valentine (henceforth known as MBV). These guys were the poster children of Shoegaze. They were loud. Dreamy. Great! Their album Loveless is a good intro cd, but their EP You Made Me Realize just blows my mind. From start to finish, every track bangs (esp. the title track.) You really cannot find such a driving bass anywhere else. You can see their influence in many newer bands; such as The Flying Guilloteens!



Click here to hear a song by MBV

Moving on... Medicine. This is the kind of music that you can put on at any time. It really has something for everyone.

• Guitarheads; screeching solos and exploding distortion.
  
• Singers; dreamy girls singing
• Trance Fans; amazing sound due to their 4 track compressed guitar

Example: Aruca/Never Click





They got popular towards the tail end of the whole thing but dammit if they didn't embody all the fuzzy goodness! Seems to have beget Magik Markers.

And now for some less known bands! Peep these tunes and appreciate the sound!

Bowery Electric-Only Sometimes Get their album Drop, Bowery at their finest!

Lush- Star Lust Coming at a time when the band was actually breaking up, they somehow released their best album, Split.

The Verve- The Sun, The Sea Sucker for the Sax

Cocteau Twins- Throughout the Dark Months of April And May AKA Blonde Redhead, back in the 80s. Quieter than MBV or others, but these scottish gent's/lady's influence on the genre is paramount.

Slowdive-For gettin' it on Youtube Video for 40 Days

Fleeting Joys- Youtube Video for Lovely Crawl

Chapter House- Youtube Video for Something More

Ride- Big Fan, Mad Shoegazey; Nowhere


Bands are realizing that Shoegaze kicked ass, and are drawing heavily from it. Next time you hear The Silver Sun Pickups, The Horrors, BRMC, Sigur Ros, etc... Be sure to thank the first-british-oldguy-guitarist-staring-at-the-ground-playing-at-145-decibles-with-a-dreamy-girl-mumbling-something that you see. So it may have been delayed, but Shoegazing is finally getting the recognition it deserved!

Music From Around the World: Krautrock Edition!

So, you think you know music huh? When you hear the word Krautrock, what comes to mind? If you answered Kraftwerk, you would be partially right, but also really, really, really lame. So put down that TI-83, nerds, and get ready to expand some horizons.

Krautrock was born in West Germany, and is characterized by a mix of repetitive jazz-based bass lines, psychedelic guitar, and very prominent drum section. Like many things, this genre was brought into the world scene by the great DJ, John Peel in the early 1970s.

Some of the most accessible music was made by a band named Can. Their album Tago Mago is arguably their magnum opus; and stands as a great example about what to expect from the genre.

Click here to listen to a song by Can

Next up comes the inevitable Faust namedrop. I dig them, but some of their records are pretty unlistenable. Great if you like ambient music, psy-rock or just a fan of some good, old fashion noise!

Click here to listen to a song by Faust

And finally, my personal favorite out of the bunch; Neu! Their self titled album has been in rotation on my driving playlist for years now and I don't see it coming off any time soon. Elements of free-jazz, psychedelic guitars, and Prog-rock are all here, and yet this music doesn't come off as pretentious! A.K.A. They are like Dream Theatre without sucking and much more creativity.

Click here to listen to a song by Neu!

If these songs have enticed you to check out krautrock, here is a sampling of some great bands over the years:

Walter Wegmuller-Ambient/pop
La Dusselfort-Upbeat/popish
Kraftwerk-Token Kraftwerk post/Trans.Euro.Expresssss
Harmonia-Nice keyboard work/very laidback
Guru Guru-Very similar to Can/excellent vocals
Grobschnitt-Fast, technical guitar work
Amon Duul-Harder rock than most Krautrock

the twilight sad

The Twilight Sad:

Short review;

• Scottish Band
• Distortion driven guitar lead
  
• Classical pop styling
  
• Sounds like; Kings of Leon, Ted Leo & The Pharmacists
  

http://www.myspace.com/thetwilightsad

Portland Sunday Rides!

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/08/summer_rolls_merrily_along_at.html

Fun stuff. Bike ridin'/ fixy babes. Oh u don' t like brakes? Thas ok hunny.

http://www.oregonlive.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2009/08/at_milepost_5_the_artist_livew.html




The Portland art scene is so hit and miss for me. Last weekend I went to the Portland Art museum, mostly to check out the exhibit they had on Dali (which left me floored/ the guy had some serious art chops). Then I decided to go check out the wing dedicated to contemporary art. I am not a whore for big names in art, in fact I love rooting for local artists and support them however I can. That being said, the contemporary wing was pretty abysmal.

It seems like the technique of taking a portrait, gobbing a shitload of Oils on , has become extremely in vogue. There is not much soul to this work, and I lost track of how many pieces took rehashed pop art and covered it in stuff. Stuff doesn't mean creativety.

Here is a piece by Keith Haring to offset the negativity.

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Here some Books that i have read for fun and for being smart.


we

can

talk.
about them loudly

INFINITE JEST
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infinite_Jest

Mamoth piece of writing. Worth the effort, very well written comedy.

A SUPPOSEDLY FUN THING I'LL NEVER DO AGAIN

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Supposedly_Fun_Thing_I%27ll_Never_Do_Again

1. David Foster Wallce taught me manythings about myself! A selection of which is about how much my writing could improve.
2. This book induced fits of laughter that hit so hard, it made me wary about reading it in public areas.
   

Wallace's books take you and Do sit ups with your MIND!
Mind feels like steel! Pumpin' IQ all day every day!


Lolita
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lolita

&

Pale Fire

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pale_Fire


Both of these books were dark and readable, but I preferred Pale Fire to Lolita. Nabokov owns (see picture).





I am not making any waves rambling on about some of the most well known classics of the last 30 years but fuck it, people need to read more and these books are great!

WORKING ON DeLILLO's WHITE NOISE

"Several Days later Murray asked me about a tourist attraction known as the most photographed barn in America. We drove twenty-two miles into the country around Farmington. There were meadows and apple orchards. White fences trailed through the rolling fields. Soon the signs started appearing. THE MOST PHOTOGRAPHED BARN IN AMERICA. We counted five signs before we reached the site.... We walked along a cowpath to the slightly elevated spot set aside for viewing and photographing. All the people had cameras; some had tripods, telephoto lenses, filter kits. A man in a booth sold postcards and slides - pictures of the barn were taken from the elevated spot. We stood near a grove of trees and watched the photographers. Murray maintained a prolonged silence, occasionally scrawling some notes in a little book.

'No one sees the barn,' he said finally.

A long silence followed.

'Once you've seen the signsabout the barn, it becomes impossible to see the barn.'
He fell silent once more. People with cameras left the elevated site, replaces at once by others.
'We're not her to capture an image. We're here to maintain one. Can you feel it, Jack? An accumulation of nameless energies.'

There was an extended silence. The man in the booth sold postcards and slides.

'Being here is a kind of spiritual surrender. We see only what the others see. The thousands who were here in the past, those who will come in the future. We've agreed to be part of a collective perception. This literally colors our vision. A religious experience in a way, like all tourism.'
Another silence ensued.

'They are all taking pictures of taking pictures,' he said."

‡‡‡

http://aids-3d.com/

Twin Peaks

Twin Peaks

Two Seasons: First aired April 8, 1990. Directed by David Lynch, originally shown on ABC.

Watch this show or at least the first season then half of the second season. You really should. Twin Peaks opens with a scene of young girl washing ashore dead, wrapped in plastic. FBI agent Dale Cooper is called in to investigate. Mystery/action/humor/surrealist imagery mark the series as the oddities of Twin Peaks unfold before you. Here are some pictures to entice:

Peter Bjorn and John

Peter Bjorn and John formed 1999, Stockholm. 5 LPs (Parasol Records).




sounds like: Blur, Cut Copy, Fischerspooner, Hot Chip


These yjoung ljads ojut of Sweden are best known for their hit single "Young Folks" BORK BORK BORK!

Concert Status: Going there tomorrow, expectyng good thjings!

Arcwelder + Shellac

ARCWELDER Formed 1988, Minnesota. Five LPs (Touch + Go Records).

sounds like: Mission Of Burma, Battles

Shellac Formed 1992, Chicago. Four LPs (Various Labels).

sounds like: Big Black, Gang of Four, Polvo

WOW Hall: 12$ at the Door.

Monday night concert at the WoW hall; hit or miss. Didn't know what to expect coming into this concert, because I hadn't given Steve Albini's music beyond Big Black much attention.

Arcwelder opened, with Grippin bass lines, Ear splitting harmonics, and decent singer. I will never understand why a band would have a drummer as the lead singer. There is something inherently uncool about a man sitting down, canting his neck to the microphone, but they pull it off.

Shellac is famous due to their lead singer, Steve Albini. The man behind Big Black went on to produce some of the most successful records in decades (Nirvana, The Pixies, The Stooges.) His unique record production is based on the idea of isolating the vocals, letting the bass shine through as the lead, and blasting the listener with extremely distorted guitar. The effect is very powerful and influenced many post-punk/grunge/shoegazing music of the early 90s. But enough fawning over Albini's production, lets talk about Shellac. Their sound is best qualified as a cross between bass driven 70s punk, with heavy funk influence. Very tight set.

They played for about two hours, stopping every once in a while to chat with the audience and have a Q&A session. Good show, tip top performers. Definitely worth a look at

Suggested Listening:

Shellac:

1000 Hurts - Prayer to God. Simple song; good introduction to their style
1000 Hurts- Mama Gina. One of their more drawn out songs; the breakdown at 4:40 on is the highlight
Terraform- Copper. Their "single". Very catchy, very short