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By Your Side

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So the last day or so, I was reminiscing over some of the old house music tracks I either have or used to dance to. On my own facebook page, I posted youtube links to four separate vids that showed the talents of one Kenny Dixon, Jr. – otherwise known as Moodymann.

Well, while perusing through some of his old records on the discogs site, I found a few gems. Then, I ran across some folks making a claim that he had remixed Sade’s “By Your Side”. Well, that claim has been proven false, however. To be honest? The remix just doesn’t have the typical Moodymann sort of sound to it. Instead, it’s from the boys at Naked Music, which makes much more sense, if you think about it.

Download Sade – By Your Side (Naked Music remix)

Anyhow, that will be one of the tracks listed here. The other is possibly the most well known of all of Sade house remixes. Ben Watt is part of the duo Everything But the Girl, and can you all believe the man is pushing fifty years of age? Wow. Makes me feel that much older, to be honest. Well, here you have his Lazy Dog remix of “By Your Side”, which has easily withstood the test of time. I played this track once at a small gig for a friend a few years back, not realizing that this song was a personal fav of his and his wife’s. So this one is, in a way, going out to Danielle and Fran. A great and unbelievably happy couple that just amazes me with how they do it.

Download Sade – By Your Side (Ben Watt’s Lazy Dog Club Mix)

Since I mentioned Moodymann, I think it’s only fair that I post one of my personal favorites of his. It’s the typical Moodymann, as it’s along the lines of “Shades of Jae” in that it works best as a tool over other tracks, but in the right place? It works on its own. Here’s “I Can’t Kick That Feeling When It Hits”. Seriously a legendary tune. You’d be making a mistake by at least not taking a listen.

Download Moodymann – I Can’t Kick This Feeling When It Hits

And I’m in a subdued state. So no smartass comments this week. Just make sure you support these guys.

Thunder only happens when you’re busy holding onto the shit you haven’t figured out yet

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Now here you go again
You say you want your freedom
Well, who am I to keep you down?
It’s only right that you should
Play the way you feel it

But listen carefully to the sound
Of your loneliness
Like a heartbeat drives you mad
In the stillness of remembering
What you had
And what you lost…
And what you had…
And what you lost

Download The Morning Benders – Dreams (Fleetwood Mac Cover)

Everyone you know bid a happy farewell to 2009. Don’t let the door hit ya, everyone said. Ready to embrace 2010. Well? How’s it going?

I think we’re all still cautiously optimistic but holding onto the pain ’09 brought us. We’re ready for it to pounce at any moment we’ve let our guard down.

You know what they call that, right? It’s called projecting. So stop it. Or you’ll be begging 2010 to forgive you, and starting this all over again.

Lately I have desperately pondered,
spent my nights awake and I wonder
what I could have done in another way
to make you stay

Download The Morning Benders – Lovefool (The Cardigans cover)

I want you to meet The Morning Benders. They are a cutie patootie fourpiece indie band from northern California. I first heard of them when I caught them on a small stage at San Francisco’s OutsideLands music festival. Their music, and onstage presence, is a bit reminiscent of the Beatles. There’s nothing to not like about them at all. And the music you’re hearing today is a bit off from what you’d find on their multiple EPs and albums. Talking Through Tin Cans might be the most popular album – from 2008. A few have followed, such as this album: The Bedroom Covers, also from 2008. I’m excited to hear what the next album will bring. Just as I try to remove caution from my optimism of this coming year altogether.

You’re the song that the trees sing when the wind blows
You’re a flower you’re a river you’re a rainbow
Sometimes I’m crazy
But I guess you know
And I’m weak and I’m lazy
And I’ve hurt you so
And I don’t listen to a word you say
When you’re in trouble I just turn away

Download The Morning Benders – Marie (Randy Newman cover)

The new album comes out on March 9…

Be the cool washcloth to my fevered head

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Hi, do you know Conor Oberst? Of course you do. You first knew him as Bright Eyes. What, I don’t know if you liked Bright Eyes; you never told me. I can’t keep track of everything you say you liked. I’m just here to share, baby. Sometimes I don’t even remember what I wrote last month. (Which wasn’t much, actually, so I guess I have an excuse there.)

He did a little bit of this before Bright Eyes and a little bit of that after Bright Eyes, eventually calling himself and his backing band Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band… oh, and somewhere squished in there he also participated in a lil side diddy called Monsters of Folk. .

Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band was on the OutsideLands lineup, and I don’t know why we skipped their show while we were there. Maybe you can scan through our podcasts and find out. They played festivals and concerts all over. I wish we had caught a performance last year. I am really loving this second album, Outer South.

Board up the windows, unplug the phone
Make it look like nobody’s home
Well, I’m real scared so prepare for the worst

Don’t get scared away if I compare this song to the Arcade Fire. You may not like AF but everyone with taste loves them, so shush it. There are so many strong tracks on this album but this is one of my favorites. Check out “Big Black Nothing”:

Download Conor Oberst – Big Black Nothing

But don’t even think for one second that this song represents the rest of the sounds on this album. A fun love song that I enjoy every time it comes on is “Air Mattress”, which reminds me of surf songs of the 60’s, teen pop songs of the 80’s, and you know what? It makes me think of Stealers Wheel in the 70’s and surely someone who laid it on that electronic keyboard in the 90’s as well.

Download Conor Oberst – Air Mattress

I’ve got a ton more tracks I would love to share with you off this album, for one reason or another. Lyrics are great on this one. The mood is just right on that one. Or any other excuses to use the words this and that just one more time on this blog post. Or I could bogart this post altogether and dedicate a song to Mookie.

Sitting on a plane chewing Nicorette
Paradise lost, haven’t found it yet
Will you talk me down if I get upset?
Be the cool washcloth to my fevered head

Because I don’t wanna dream if it won’t come true
I don’t wanna dream if it don’t come true
If there’s somethin’ in me then I guess it’s in you
If there’s somethin’ in me then I know it’s in you

Download Conor Oberst – Nikorette

Reppin’ The Old School

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So I was out at a Haiti benefit Sunday night pretty randomly. Fun was had. Don’t believe me? Check out the picture of me looking like a complete ass. George actually submitted it to This Is Photo Bomb, so I assume there’s a bit of teh funnay involved.

Anyhow, there were a slew of DJs involved in this benefit. The next to last one I remember was playing a ton of old school – or as some call it, the Golden Age – hip-hop. So today’s post is going to be filled with happy thoughts of old school stuff.

One of the forgotten groups from back when is Ed O.G. and Da Bulldogs. They’re originally from up my way, in Boston. Roxbury, to be exact. Also the home of someone else later in this post. You’ll have to keep reading to find out who, though. Anyhow, the first album, Life of a Kid in the Ghetto, produced two notable singles: “Bug-A-Boo” and “I Got To Have It”. The latter is what I’m sharing here. A great bootleg remix of this was released by Peaches Music on their Jager Bomb EP.

Download Ed O.G. and Da Bulldogs – I Got To Have It

Another track, albeit a few years older, is by the Marley Marl Allstars. This one features a bunch of old school guys. Masta Ace, Craig G, Kool G Rap, as well as Big Daddy Kane. Not a bad collection, eh? Well together, they release one of the seminal hits of the late ’80’s in “The Symphony Part 1”. Part 2? Forgettable. So Part 1 is what I bring you.

Download Marley Marl Allstars – The Symphony Part 1

Next is probably the strangest man in hip-hop history. Well, at least when he was still part of the Ultramagnetic MCs. The man is Kool Keith, and some may recognize him from Dr. Octagon fame. Well, this track, I remember watching the music video and seeing Kool Keith in a straitjacket, and if I remember right? What looked like a bird cage on his head. Just fucking weird. Well, the mix in the video was the East Coast mix. The album version of this track doesn’t come close to this one. So enjoy!

Download Ultramagnetic MCs – Poppa Large (East Coast Video mix)

And the last one for today? Is the other Roxbury native I spoke of. His name in the hip-hop world is none other than Guru. While there may be better overall cuts by Gang Starr, this one is one of my personal favorites. Off of the album Daily Operation, this track shows the immense talents of DJ Premier, also. “Take It Personal” is a cut that simply talks of the world of betrayal, and I’m sure more than a few out there can relate to some degree with this song.

Download Gang Starr – Take It Personal

Yes. Support capitalism, too. If you don’t, you’re a communist sympathizer. I’ll go resurrect Joseph McCarthy. And we’ll come find you. Commie pig.

There’s some thieving going on

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Mookie and I went to the library on Sunday. Mookie was thinking about looking up some music production books, but ended up awed at the CD collection. He checked out 7 CDs. And 2 DVDs. And we each grabbed a few books.

All of these items ended up being somehow related to each other. I abandoned “1984” by George Orwell at about page 80 (I was in between books and had to grab something) in order to start reading Chuck Klosterman’s first attempt at fiction, “Downtown Owl.” Turns out, it’s set over the winter of 83/84, and the high school lit teacher assigns all his classes the book… What do you think… “1984.” I loved “Downtown Owl”. I could have finished it on Wednesday, but I saved the final few pages for the next day. I digress. It was odd, though, that I was reading a compelling story about many different people in a small town who will have one possibly tragic circumstance affect them all, while Mookie is just about to finish “Under The Dome” by Stephen King which is kind of about the same thing.

Wait, there’s more. There were a lot of great music finds in that stack of CDs Mookie grabbed. I had never heard of The Black Keys before. Mookie made a nighttime listening playlist which included The Black Keys, The Black Ghosts, The Black Crowes, and a few other interesting albums.

There’s another coincidence for you already, however, there is one more. One of these artists, although I couldn’t tell you which one since I was listening in my sleep, kept mentioning Hunter S Thompson in one of their songs, and believe it or not we also checked out “Where The Buffalo Roam”, a movie about…who do you think.

Take a listen to this bluesy rock sound and heartbreaking guitar…

Download The Black Keys – Same Old Thing

The Black Keys is a duo from Ohio who have been putting out albums since 2002. In their basement. The latest Keys album, Attack and Release, was released in 2008 after being contacted by Brian Burton write a few songs on an album he was developing. Who is Brian Burton? None other than DJ Danger Mouse. Uhhhhh… The Grey Album??? Heard of it? Anyway, despite still recording the album in Ohio, Danger Mouse produced the record. It’s a beautiful sound. You’ve got to pick it up.

And if you’re interested in what happened when The Black Keys continued to delve in to the world of hip hop, I do believe Mookie is working on a post to introduce you to Blakroc. Yup. Dig it.

Attack and Release is one album you do NOT want to be caught without in 2010. Check out The Black Keys. Seriously. You will be so glad.

From Electro to Electro

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Well, today is more on the guy who is sometimes taking the moniker of the Thin White Duke. It’s Les Rythmes Digitales. I thought of it when I was listening to the On The Floor At The Boutique by Lo-Fidelity Allstars. I have had that album since it came out back in ’98 (or at least that’s when I first laid eyes on it) and I still crack it out every so often. Hell, those of you who dig through our blog posts will find the Jackson and His Computer Band track “Makin’ It Happen” on here. That’s thanks to that same CD!

Well, LRD seminal hit “(Hey You) What’s That Sound?” is on this disc, too. It made me wonder what else he’s been up to and I have to say I found a couple of tracks that I had forgotten about! Now, I can’t stand the group Justice. Sorry. They’re chodes. I mean, there was that whole deal where they basically faked their live set. Although that could be doubtful, too. I mean, if you and I drank too much or sniffed a tad more than needed? We’d probably look like the picture below, also. I can see his reaction now: “Wait. It wasn’t plugged in? Well. We still brought it proper.”

Anyhow, LRD did a remix of Justice’s “D.A.N.C.E.” that’s not all too shabby. And I fucking loathe the original. Whenever I hear the original? It makes me get in my car, drive to a local SPCA, walk up and down the halls of cages, pick the cutest puppy of the bunch, and kick it. Not really. And if you got offended by that? Shut the fuck up. I hear the low price guarantee at Wal-Mart does in fact cover a sense of humor, too. Here’s the track.

Download Justice – D.A.N.C.E. (Les Rythmes Digitales remix)

Well, the man also did what I consider to be a great remix of Cassius’ “Feeling For You”. Much more housey and happy, and I could easily drop this in a DJ set. If I played any more, that is. So you get to drop it in your set instead. YAAAY!

Download Cassius – Feeling For You (Les Rythmes Digitales Dreamix edit)

Lastly is a remix of “Jacques Your Body (Make Me Sweat)”, but this is the Switch remix. When Switch was still any good. Ugh. They split in two, and next thing you know, Switch turns to shit. Sorry, but Switch hasn’t really made anything half-decent in the last two years. It’s depressing, but I guess that sound can only go so far. Well, this is a remix I personally adore. So have at it and enjoy.

Download Les Rythmes Digitales – Jacques Your Body (Make Me Sweat) (Switch remix)

Now go buy this stuff. I have illegitimate children to feed.

They’ll remember me for my youth

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“I mean, where do people go to find music these days?”

The same place we go to find everything else. The interwebs. That’s why we bring you this blog. Or I suppose you could use Pandora. But don’t make me rant about Pandora again. I know, I know. Everyone thinks it’s the greatest thing since sliced almonds. Or sliced potatoes. Or whatever you all used to say. I admit I may have been a bit alarmist with these comments, but I was trying to prove a point. Can I get a hallelujah from anyone else out there who just can’t seem to get HERRRD! (That’s “Heard”, with an urban accent. Hey, just trying to help.)

Back to the topic at hand. I have your new music for you. This band has been around for a few years but until last summer has only released lil’ limited edition singles and such. Their first album, Reservoir, was recorded in the U.S. by the London-based band Fanfarlo, led by Swedish musician Simon Balthazar. The music throughout this entire album is just delightful. I mean delightful. You can clearly hear the use of mandolin, glockenspiel, and the host of other captivating instruments in the band’s repertoire. In fact, the already-created instruments just weren’t enough to round out the sounds that you hear. Musician Mark West created this tool which would create a magnetic square wave current which can be heard through the guitar when held near the guitar pickups.

He began calling it the Fanfarlophone after using it with Fanfarlo. He’s no longer with the band; however, between the saw, the 30 acoustic guitars, trumpet, accordion, saxophone, clarinet… Whew! A beautiful, beautiful sound is put forth.

One of the slower, but more beautiful tracks on this album is #8, “If It Is Growing.” Check it out below.

Download Fanfarlo – If It Is Growing

That if you built this to look just like you
Then here’s the irony
No one will know
If it’s tomorrow or today that you go

One of the fascinating things about Reservoir is how very dark the lyrics are, even though they are delivered in such an undisturbing way. You can use this music for whichever mood suits you. The other interesting aspect is the origin of the band’s name. The inspiration comes from the 19th Century poet Charles Baudelaire’s novella “La Fanfarlo”, a complex story using irony and allegory and basically, just one of the better names that stood out while Balthazar found himself reading a lot of French symbolists.

Take a listen to the opening track, “I’m A Pilot,” and if you can decipher the lyrics (Or if not, feel free to visit the lyrics page of their website), see if you can decide who Balthazar was channeling when he wrote it. You may be right.

Download Fanfarlo – If It Is Growing

Buy this album. It might be the best thing that happened to 2009. Make it be the best thing that starts off your amazing 2010.

BRINGING TEH EPIC!!!!

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Yes. Bringing you epic shit here. Most anyone that hasn’t lived under a rock the last few years could tell you who the Yeah Yeah Yeahs are. Hell, I wrote about their track “Zero” a few months back. Loved it. But there’s nothing like their first album Fever To Tell. Beginning to end, the thing is awesome encapsulated onto a CD. If you disagree, you’re a terrorist. And have kittens. Fact. Now shut your mouth hole.

Anyhow, I ran across this remix of their song “Maps”, and I think I had a seizure. It was that good to me. There will be naysayers that hate on dance music, and that’s fine. I don’t like your hairdo, either. Really? You paid someone to distort your physical appearance under the impression it was cool to have your hair with 8 inch long bangs? C’mon. If you do that, who can see you sulk at an indie-rock show! Wait. That’s actually a good thing. Never mind.

Anyhow, this remix of “Maps” is epic. And again. If you dislike? Well, I guess we have different definitions of the term. By the way, I heart sarcasm. It’s pretty awesome. Anyhow, this dude Elite Force did this remix, and you all really need to listen to this remix. I love this. It takes just enough from the original to work as an excellent remix. Which is the point of what a remix should be. Seriously, go take a listen.

Download The Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Maps (Elite Force Re-Fix)

Download The Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Maps

And go buy stuff. Or I schedule a debate at your house between Dan Quayle and Ashley Simpson. I mean it.

Hear This, Not That

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We are in a new decade. And we are tumbling ever so quickly toward Idiocracy. Oh, trust me. We are. Somehow McDonald’s is showing a larger effort to inform the consumer about nutrition while the consumer is just choosing to go down the street for a Baconator or a Quad Stack instead. And when Suzie Consumer wants something “healthy”, she picks up a Nutri Grain bar. Because she doesn’t care about the ingredients, just the fancy packaging.

And advertising.

And sex appeal.

Commence Idiocracy.

OK, turn into fat, retarded pigs who know that electrolytes are supposed to be good for you for all I care. Don’t pick up your copy of Eat This Not That to start a decade of knowing what the hell you are putting into your body.

But don’t listen to garbage. I’m here to guide you. Maybe we can keep from falling down the slippery slope into dystopia, one song at a time.

Hot Topic and AP are going to be parading this horrible band around the country this winter and spring. Don’t fall for it! You will immediately lose IQ points. There are other choices.

Between you and I
I still keep your pictures underneath my bed
Where she gives herself to me

“What’s the difference between them and Fall Out Boy,” Mookie asks. I don’t know why he doesn’t see it. I thought he liked Fall Out Boy. Well anyway. Everything on this last album has been done before. You want a campy, feel-good anthem? Hawk Nelson is a good place to find it. You want a crafty, I-Miss-You or I’m-Better-Off-Without-You snarkfest? It’s the F-O-B.

I’m not going to bother assessing for you the new album or any past ones. It’s 2010. Use your taste wisely. Oh, so why am I using old songs to compare to these? Because my point is that Every Avenue never even needed to form as a band.

So how you like them apples?

Hear This, Not That:

This:

Download Fall Out Boy – Tell That Mick He Just Made My List Of Things To Do Today

Not:

Download Every Avenue – Take A Step Back

This:

Download Hawk Nelson – California

Not:

Download Every Avenue – Chasing The Night

Spektor spectacle!

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Okay, so I get an email from these cats in NYC to say they’ve finished a remix of Regina Spektor‘s “Folding Chair” off of her latest album, Far. The folks in question are (Pretty) Girls & Lasers, and today, they’ll be debuting the remix at a party down in the East Village at Arlo and Esme. Below is a map.


View Larger Map

Well, this had me digging around for some other works of Spektor’s that have popped up. Surprisingly few I could find, however! I did find a couple of nice remixes of “Fidelity”, which I’ll be featuring here. Perhaps the PG&L folks will even be privy to comment after their party about their new remix for you all!

This first remix is gritty, subdued, and overall just a different mood from the original, which is why it works so well. The man behind it is Manhattan based DJ Blockhead. Good work behind this mix.

Download Regina Spektor – Fidelity (Blockhead remix)

Next up is just a gorgeous piece of work by DJ Morgan Page. I have to say, I do remember Morgan from here in Boston, and it’s good to see this kid getting some acclaim for all the hard work he’s put into it! This is his unreleased remix of “Fidelity” and again, it’s an absolutely wonderful piece or remix work.

Download Regina Spektor – Fidelity (Morgan Page Unreleased remix)

And lastly? Who could forget the original? It helped launch her career to a much bigger level, and despite the pop nature of it? Is a great track.

Download Regina Spektor – Fidelity

Yep. Buy stuff. Or you will not get laid this year. At all. Hell, that’d scare me into buying stuff!