Megan Fox broke up with her fiancee today and is back on the market. YEAHHHHHHHH. Guess she'll need to get that ink lasered off. Maybe they can somehow turn Brian into David? Who knows? Either way, best news I've heard in awhile.
New songs from their upcoming disc, You Can't Take It With You. Definitely one my most anticipated releases along with Manchester Orchestra's new joint. Love how Julio's vocals are getting more involved.
Short, but new mixtape from up-and-comer Nero. Digging the spacey vibe. His rhymes don't always reach out and grab you, but talent's there. Not to mention a dope remix of Houstatlantavegas, one of my favorite cuts on Drake's newest mixtape.
Far and away my favorite At The Drive In song. If you've never heard any At The Drive In, please go pick some of their stuff up, especially Relationship of Command. Although I love the stuff Cedric and Omar are doing in The Mars Volta, I still miss ATDI sound a lot.
Happy weekend. Don't want to do a lot of the work coming up, but I'll find time for it. Already working on big plans for Spring Break, we'll see whats up.
Official music video for "Welcome to Heartbreak" (feat. Kid Cudi). One of my favorite cuts off 808's. Video is sick, a little too tripped out, but I'm still feeling it. One of the coolest ideas I've seen in awhile. I like how Kanye keeps pushing his artistic boundaries. I'm just hoping it'll take him to another level soon.
"And my head keeps spinning, can't stop having these visions, I gotta get with it"
Three records I've been listening to a lot recently. Good music to vibe to. All give us a really dreamy atmosphere. Each song from each album takes you to a different, but distinct place. Listen to it in a dark room either with good speakers or headphones. Must-have's in my opinion.
Oh and a well-done cover. I wouldn't usually post about The Fray, but good job to them for this.
Finally got a chance to spin Drake's latest mixtape today. A lot slower tempo than some of his past stuff. Everyone knows he can croon and spit, but I liked his singing to stay in the chorus more. Still some hits on this, updated version of "Say What's Real" and "Uptown" (feat. Bun B. and Weezy) are hot. Also got some strange guests on here (Lykke Li and Peter, Bjorn, and John). Some slower tracks are pretty sick too, such as "Houstatlantavegas" and "Best I Ever Had". Deff worth checking it out.
I want one of these so bad. Saw Rob Dyrdek nagging one of these for his Fantasy Factory and it looked amazing. Start watching that show, I think Rob is hysterical.
Also found out earlier that The Dear Hunter is opening for Brand New at the show I'm hitting up at URI in March. Sahweeet. It's all happening...as they say.
The songs called "Ballad of Noah" by K-OS featuring Buck 65. My theme song to today. Don't know why, just got that vibe when it came on earlier. If you haven't spun anything from K-OS before, do yourself a favor and pick up Atlantis-Hymns for Disco. So dope.
"If you reach a dead-end trail, pray to God it'll never fail. We've all walked in each others' shoes, so everybody sings the blues."
Check out this free 13-song EP from Jabee. Haven't heard of him before today, but what I've heard so far is dope. Kind of an off-kilter flow, but I'm digging it.
One more song I've been spinning a lot today. I miss The Format so much. Just really good songwriters. Can't wait to hear new stuff from Fun, though. New song up on myspace.
"These last three years, I know they've been hard, but now it's time to get out of the desert and into the sun, even if it's alone..."
Cannot wait for their new shit. Their self-titled is one of my favorite cds of all time and Into The Flood was equally brilliant. And aside from being a dope bassist, Julio is one hilariously ridiculous motherfucker.
Been spinning "If It Means A Lot To You" by A Day To Remember all day today. A Day To Remember is definitely one of my guilty pleasures. This song is mad cheesy, but I like the back and forth between their singer Jeremy McKinnon and the guest appearance by VersaEmerge's Sierra Kusterbeck. Oh and gotta love the gang vocals.
"La, la la la, la la la, now everybody's singing..."
My current obsession with P.O.S. led me to further explore Doomtree's self-titled joint. Doomtree (made up of P.O.S., Sims, Dessa, Mike Mictlan, and Cecil Otter) still bring that Rhymesayers sound, but bring something a little more abstract to the table. Excellent production by Lazerbeak, MK Larada, and Paper Tiger use many different kinds of sounds, resulting in a wide array of unusual beats. Lyrically, Doomtree is extremely metaphorical, probably makes sense considered Dessa and Cecil Otter have their roots in spoken word. If you're down with P.O.S., Astronautilus, or El-P, deff check out Doomtree.
Drumsticks
Kid Gloves
Liver Let Die
"I rock glass fronts over my bare teeth, like you wake up with broken dreams, but know you felt real..."
Such a dope song. Even more appropriate that he samples "I Wonder". The more and more I think about it, Charles Hamilton is the next Kanye. Charles got that flow and obscure tastes, and on top of it, he has the controversy and cockiness surrounding him that follows around Ye all the time. Pick up some of his mixtapes if you don't already have 'em.
I've found myself weighing the pros and cons of technology. It brings people together in so many ways (There's no way I'd be as close with as many people as I am without a cell phone, iChat, Facebook, etc...) Yet, it does also take away that arguably necessary element of isolation we all need. It's a real love/hate thing for me.
I think this article outlines it very well, though. Definitely a good read.
Shouts to B-Sides R Us. Really awesome idea. If you're looking for some rare tracks, demos, acoustic versions of things...this is where you need to be.
Can't stop listening to P.O.S. and Ben Kweller.
"Do you recognize when the world won't stop for you?...Don't let 'em choose for you."
I've always loved Ben Kweller's approach to song writing. Equal parts honesty, quirkiness, and sunshine. C'mon, even Talib Kweli likes him enough to use his songs in a sample (see the use of "In Other Words" in Talib's "Ms. Hill") Changing Horses shows Ben Kweller venturing away from sunny pop-rock tunes towards alt-country. A lot of people are speculating it's because of his recent move back to Austin, Tx from New York, but I could always kind of hear the progression. Either way, this is going to be one of my favorite albums of 2009, I can already tell. Perfect music to listen to on a sunny morning or afternoon. Especially when driving with the windows down. The tracks are filled with lap steel guitar ("Gypsy Rose") and jaunty piano ("Sawdust Man"), the kind of music you expect to hear in a saloon or on the porch on a late summer night. The best part is Kweller's vocals, as he managed to maintain his own distinct voice, while adding enough of a drawl to add to the feel of the record.
If you dig Ryan Adams or Conor Oberst, be sure to pick this up. Be sure to check out: "Ballad of Wendy Baker" (which Kweller actually wrote 10 years ago after a close friend died in a car accident) , "Things I Like To Do" (my early favorite), and "Sawdust Man" (reminiscent of Paul McCartney's solo stuff).
Another great song from Dear and the Headlights I can't stop listening to. Ian Metzger's yelps float so well over the chiming chords and groovy bass lines. Go get Small Steps, Heavy Hooves or Drunk Like Bible Times if you haven't already.
P.O.S. (aka Steph Alexander) has been one of my favorite MC's for a long time. Audition is, and most likely will remain, one of my favorite hip-hop albums. A self-anointed punk/hardcore kid who ventured into hip-hop, P.O.S. brings elements of the underground you expect from the Minneapolis scene (Atmosphere, Brother Ali, Astronautilas), as well as a distinct, aggressive punk sound. On Audition, we saw samples of Underoath (check out "P.O.S. Is Ruining Everything") to features from Craig Finn of the Hold Steady ("Safety In Speed"l) and Greg Attonito of The Bouncing Souls ("De La Souls"). Mix this with his in-your-face flow and sharp-tongued lyrics, you get a musical molotov cocktail ready to bust through your speakers.
Now I expected nothing but good things from his newest joint, Never Better. Still, I didn't see this coming. Truly, I was blown away how much P.O.S has stepped up his game. On Never Better (excuse the pun), P.O.S. has truly sounded Never Better. His beats are varied, dark, memorable. His lyrical jabs are heavyweight quality, hitting you upside the head 'til you can't stand straight.
"Let It Rattle" opens things with echoing chords over P.O.S's rapid-fire spits, shouting out a "god-damn recession" that could apply to any matter of things in our world. The brooding vibe builds until it suddenly explodes into thundering drums. The drum-and-bass combo P.O.S. has been known for is ever present on this album, but this time brings a whole new power and mood to his songs. "Drum Roll", the first single, literally features drum roll beats that P.O.S. chases through the song, showcasing his flow, one of the smoothest I've ever heard.
Venturing away from his personal tales of love, loss, and finding his place seen in Audition, P.O.S. uses Never Better to take a detached view on race ("Purexed"), meaning of life ("Goodbye), politics ("Low Light Low Life"), etc...These three tracks are some of my favorites. "Purexed" brings a sparkling indie guitar line with classic P.O.S. backing drums. "Goodbye", my personal favorite, fills P.O.S.' quota for one uplifting song per album. Real hot song, though. Always stay up. "Low Light Low Life" will be a favorite to anyone who has checked out P.O.S.' other group, Doomtree, as the entire group is featured in the song. If you haven't heard Doomtree yet, pick up their self-titled shit, it pushes hip-hop's boundaries in a very unique way.
All in all, P.O.S. has proved to release another masterpiece. Every element he brings to the table is completely genuine. His beats are hot, his rhymes are serious, yet he adds enough humor and pop culture (see name drops to Fugazi, Iggy and the Stooges, The Shawshank Redemption, The Big Lebowski, and many more...) to keep things light-hearted at the right points. Everything about P.O.S. is done in a way that no one else could pull of. That personal touch is what is so appealing about his tunes.
My conclusion: EVERYONE PICK THIS UP! Hit stores real soon. Please buy it, this dude honestly has earned your money. If you need any incentive, the album art is insane. Filled with transparent inserts, full lyrics sheet....it really is a whole package deal. Go get it and support one of the best out.
Oh and for all yall in Boston, P.O.S. is coming to Harper's Ferry in late Feb. I expect to see everyone there.
