Finally the latest issue of Wax Poetics showed up in my mailbox! Pwelbs tantalized me about a week ago that this issue would focus on Prince. Wax Poetics is my favorite magazine and Prince is in my top 5 musicians/bands of all time. Together at last.
I tossed on 1979’s Prince’s Prince album (album #2) on the turntable, leaned back in the recliner and quickly paged through it cover to cover. I then settled on Alan Leeds (Prince’s former tour manager) and wife’s remembrance of the Purple Rain tour. Wonderful insider’s view, but respectful – not a tell all. I can’t wait to read the rest of the issue.
Thanks to my kids for getting me a subscription to Wax Poetics a couple of years ago!
You know when some hip new band hits my radar screen they have some serious hype and a hell of a good PR person. Granted the fact they were local (Minneapolis) and there was a Gayngs (one of my favorite LPs of 2010) connection hooked me. I borrowed this release from Pwelbs (by way of the charming JSparks) and was so blown away I went out and bought a vinyl copy at the Electric Fetus.
What I found was some amazing beats with an amazing vocalist who has figured out how to use Auto-Tune as an instrument. Vocally this the equivalent of a female Bon Iver, but the music is much more funky, electronica, and hip-hoppy.
At first listen this seems very mellow, but the more you listen to the textures you realize how absolutely rocking this album is. The drumming is amazing – rock steady one moment and jittery the next. The overall effect is a laconic hyperactive juxtaposition that is gripping. Channy Leaneagh’s disembodied vocals are the perfect foil to the instrumentation. On paper these vocals should be detached, but instead they are soulful. On paper the beats are atmospheric, but instead they are funky.
Poliça pulls off a masterpiece.
I had the privilege of tagging along with Pwelbs to the first Twin Cities Music Brunch at the Loring Pasta Bar. The event was sponsored by CrowdNoize and Hydrive Shows. The idea was to get some of the young lions of the Twin Cities hip hop community together to network and brainstorm. The event was attended by talent (DJs, MCs, producers, etc.), business types (promoters, label staff, etc.) and hard-core enthusiasts (bloggers).
What impressed me most was the enthusiasm for the scene and the esprit de corps to see everyone succeed – a rising tides will lift all boats view. Everyone seemed to know each other, although some only virtually – so it was fun to see a little human touch.
My sense is the event was a success – some networking was done, some ideas were generated and most importantly some community was built. Good luck guys – I hope this is the start of many more similar events and further growth of the TC hip hop scene.
Over that last year I have picked up several bargain Brian Auger used LPs for a buck or two. Everyone of them has been fantastic and this one does not disappoint. This is from the early 70s and you can see how influential this group was on the jazz rock that followed them.
Some of the Oblivion Express vocals can be kind of cheesy, but Alex Ligertwood (who went on to fame with Santana) is a great vocalist on this LP. He reminds me a lot of Steve Winwood – which is a great vocal type to have with this kind of music.
Start the incense, dim the lights and put on this LP. You will be feeling groovy shortly.
I have read a couple of rave reviews of this album. Sadly I picked it up from emusic and it does nothing for me. It kind of reminds me of Cat Power, but without the soul. I don’t hate it, it just is unremarkable. I have listened to it five times and I don’t think I could tell you a single lyric or hum a riff.
I don’t want to give up on this album, but I may just need to set aside and come back to it later. Beware of the hype.
Sometimes the simplest things can make a huge difference. I received a JA Michell record clamp for Christmas this past year and I have been really enjoying it.
I wanted a nice clamp for my turntable, but was worried that some of the heavy styles would be hard on my motor so I was excited to receive this very light weight model. It uses preasure vs. weight and it is very dense material. It has even cured some of my slightly warped records.
A clamp gives you a stable sound image, better transient response, less distortion and a deeper sound stage. It is one of the most inexpensive upgrades you can make you you analog system.
Highly recommended.
Hail, hail to the Rock N’ Roll Music Sale in Maple Grove Minnesota. Last week I went to their sale and came home with a major stack of wax. This is mainly a vinyl event – they have CDs (but I did not even look).
For about 25 years I have been listening to a CD of Gregg Allman’s Laid Back. It has been one of my favortite albums. I picked up a copy at the sale for $2.00. I finally got around to listening to it tonight and what a mind blower.
It sounded fantastic. The first CD reissues were often very careless – grab whatever tape was available and burn it to digital. Maybe there are better version of the CD available, but I will be hard pressed to imagine any will beat this piece of vintage vinyl.
This is a magnificent album. Highlights include Allman’s own “Midnight Rider” and Jackson Browne’s “These Days.” This LP had a whole different groove from the Allman Brothers of the era – much more of a singer songwriter groove. If you ever find this in a crate for less then $5 grab it. Amazingly my $2 version was in excellent shape both the vinyl and the cover (wonderful gatefold).
After reading Sammy Hagar’s autobiography excerpts in Rolling Stone last year I did not have much hope for this album. I figured that Eddie Van Halen was a lost cause. Then when there was more hype about the coming tour of a reconstituted version of Van Halen with Diamond Dave then about the new album I figured that was not a good sign. It looked like Van Halen were going to be an oldies touring band collecting funds for their retirement. Then I read a few reviews of the leading single “Tattoo” that were very bleak (I never heard it until now). So when release Tuesday came this album was not on my list.
Then I started to read some reviews of the full LP that were pretty positive so I headed over to iTunes to sample the album. Surprise! It was pretty damn good. Not VH1 or 1984 good, but a very respectable late career offering.
This is not a pop top-40 album like 1984, but rather muscular pop-metal. Van Halen’s sound has evolved from their late 70s and early 80s heyday. They are not milking that, nor are they distancing themselves. I feel like there is some recognition of how metal has evolved as a genre over the last 30 years – mainly speed and intensity.
Diamond Dave’s voice is solid (it always kind of sucked – his strength is attitude not pipes). Lyrically Dave is still devilish and sophomoric (that is a complement). He has taken on an additional voice – a deep almost Leonard Cohen-ish sing/talk (that is the sound is similar – none of the lyrical sophistication of Cohen).
Eddie is absolutely brilliant. For a guy who was reportedly shuffling around in his slippers, drooling and absent-mindedly looking for his heaters a couple of years ago, he clearly must have gotten his shit together. He plays fast, melodic and distinctively Van Halen. Honestly he is on top of his game. I find this a bit shocking. Better yet he lost the keys to the ivories. Simple put, he rocks.
This is not a classic, but for the Van Halen fan this is a fun reboot. Frankly classic Van Halen and Van Hager has been so played to death on classic radio that I can’t really listen to it. Chickenfoot was a nice fix, but this is better. By the way “Tattoo” does not suck.
PS – Check out how much this album cover cops an old Commodores album:
Wonderfully phallic.
And weirdest opening act of all time: Kool and the Gang will be opening for Van Halen on their coming tour. Beyond having hits in the same time period what on earth do these two have in common?
80 artist covering Bob. OK, well at least he has enough songs to go around. There are more successes than failures here – which is surprising when you have a collection that includes Pete Townsend and Ke$ha (or alphabetical from Adele to Ziggy Marley).
It is going to take a while to digest all of this – there are 4 CDs of material. But I have skipped around and I like what I hear. It is great to be positively blown away by Miley Cyrus cover of “You’re Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go” as a straight ahead country song. It is not surprising that My Chemical Romance cover of “Desolation Row” is un-listenable. As expected I am not disappointed by Pete Townsend’s tender low-key cover of “Corrina Corrina.”
So overall a great cause and a nice collection of Dylan covers – some expected and some wonderful surprises – an incredible value at 20 bucks.
My daughter turned me on to this set of books and I read them in quick succession in about 3 weeks – miraculously fast for me. That alone is a thumbs up. My wife read the first book – her first attempt at science fiction – and she liked it too.
I have not read a book from the “young adult” genre since I was in junior high and read S.E. Hinton’s The Outsider. The only thing that seems young adult about this is the main characters and the fact that it is a fast and easy read. Otherwise if I did not have hype to tell me otherwise, I would have characterized this as quality science fiction.
The basic plot of the trilogy – and I am not giving anything away – is that in a future society the central government asserts oppressive control over its colonies by annually having a cruel event called the Hunger Games. Each of the 12 colonies (called districts in the book) must use a lottery to pick two children (male and female) between 12 and 17 who are then sent to the capital to compete in a fight to the death (only one winner amongst 24 contestants) for the amusement of the oppressors.
The book is a very entertaining read and it is just thought-provoking enough to really make you think about our own culture and government. Soon to be a major motion picture – read it now in anticipation of the movie. I am not sure if it will be Twilight big – but I bet it will be pretty close.
Axl's Catch Groove 