The guy behind Memory Tapes played his first show ever only a couple weeks ago in Manchester.
Once the drums and everything kicks in I immediately wish I could've teleported there for the night.
first song played:
Wednesday
Interview w/ Mount McKinley
New Jersey shoeless wonders Mount McKinley have quietly been making a ruckus in their hometown
for a while now and slowly they’re making their way into every bloggers’ hearts.
This is ideal winter music, sobering and intoxicating at the same time.
Every song is bundled up, warm in sheets of fuzz.
I could nestle up with their myspace and sleep the day away right now.
AHWF: Why "Mount McKinley"?
Some blogs have been getting their TMZ on and making up theories (some which I won't bother to mention).
Dylan: Haha…we just like the sound of it. No significance.
AHWF: What's your guys' writing and recording process, and where do you lay your tracks down?
I picture somewhere poorly lit and well heated.
Joe: We practice in Dylan’s basement and it’s actually really the opposite; well lit and poorly heated. We’ve been playing together now for three or four years, so we’re pretty used to each other’s style. Our songs are usually the results of jams that we structure and organize and add layers to. Since it’s only the two of us, the recording process flows a lot easier because there aren’t so many competing ideas and we both know what kind of sound we want.
AHWF: What's the secret to getting yourself out there and heard these days?
Lately, for every "chillwave" band there's like 10 "glo-fi" bands (I honestly don't know how the two differentiate).
Dylan: The blogs that have featured our songs lately (Pixelhorse, Get Off The Coast, Friendship Bracelet) have exposed us to a lot of people who we weren’t reaching. They have definitely been the biggest help to us in that regard. As for standing out, we don’t think about that. We just write songs, record them and hope that people listen. I actually have no idea what chillwave is…
AHWF: How's the Jersey scene treating you?
Do you guys see yourselves branching out, say, into the big apple like a lot of bands drool over, or do you think you'll stay put?
Joe: We definitely want to branch out and play more shows in New York. We’ve played a lot of Jersey shows but don’t always get such a strong reaction. Most bands here that we’ve played with are punk or play garage rock, similar to The Gaslight Anthem, so we’re usually on the other side of the music spectrum when we gig.
AHWF: Do you guys have any trouble translating your recordings into performances as a duo?
Some bands can't seem to make up for the instruments they're missing live.
Dylan: We’ve never had a problem with that. When we’re recording, it can be tempting to add and experiment, but we make a conscious effort to keep that to a minimum so that our live set sounds as close to the recordings as possible. We also use drones via samplers and loop stations to make up for our lack of bassist.
AHWF: What are some things that inspire you guys outside of music?
Dylan: Ponies, sunshine, cupcakes, etc.
AHWF: What do you think of the internet and blogs taking over where a lot of the music industry is dying?
Joe: Though it doesn’t make for the perfect business model for the music industry, I think the shift to the internet and blogs is something that most people have already embraced. I think the internet makes it harder for newer bands to get heard, but at the same time, certain blogs do a lot to promote and release new music.
AHWF: Something I wonder about a lot of bands with sound quality similar to yours in your recordings is how you feel about distortion? Nowadays some bands seem to actually add a lot of distortion to the whole songs in post-production, whereas other ones simply don't have the equipment to NOT have distortion and clipping occur on their tracks. In a track like "In the Dark" you use this wave of distortion pretty masterfully though, in a way I probably wouldn't enjoy the recording as much without it.
Dylan: I think that overdrive, fuzz, distortion etc. can be great when it’s balanced by cleaner elements. I'll cite “Sometimes” by My Bloody Valentine, which has a layer of muddy, fuzzed-out guitar coupled with an acoustic guitar strumming the same progression. I love the way that sounds. We had “finished” recording In The Dark a few times, only to scrap everything and start over. In the end, we just applied that same concept and were finally satisfied with the outcome.
What's with the barefootedness?
Dylan: When we play in my basement I never wear shoes. So when we play live, I like to be barefoot.
AHWF: What can we look forward to from you guys in the near future?
Joe: We’re in the process of writing new material so we should have more recordings up soon. We’re also booking more shows, so expect more live performances.
Thanks a lot guys!
Tuesday
Monday
Apocalypse Meow
Modern day Watership Down?
I don't like bunnies shooting eachother... :(
But, I must see.
Saturday
Say My Name
Nothing better than this song's pre-chorus.
Fuck you, that's why.
p.s.
awesome nirvana cover by the recently late jay reatard:
Wednesday
Tuesday
Toro Y Moi - “Blessa” (Video)
This guy crafted a really great album,
and I'm glad they made a video for my favorite track.
Perfect atmosphere for the song; barely lit is how it should be.
Monday
Sunday
Thursday
Killer Mike makes his last album free
To promote his upcoming album,
Killer Mike has decided to give permission to
internet users to freely download his previous record,
The production alone on this album is spot-on.
Grand, inspired production - not the typical lazy dirty south sound.
Mike is equivalent in talent with acts like
Outkast, 3 6 Mafia, Pill, etc.
Unfortunately, just without the deserved amount of fame.
"I tend to think like the American male, in terms of what is going on in the American working-class male's life right now. The guy that puts on a Coca-Cola uniform or a Fed Ex or UPS uniform...in Hip Hop, our lives are an extension of that. Whether a writer or a deejay, we're built on working-class, blue-collar values, so I try to speak to those people. I think that what you're hearing in the music is what's to come, what's happening now, and even some solutions. I think it's needed, and I'm glad it's appreciated."
Wednesday
Theophilus London - Humdrum Town (video)
This looks like Wong-Kar Wai came to Brooklyn for a weekend, got drunk with Theophilus and shot a video.
I wish.
It's also exactly what I was picturing,
him just walking towards the camera mouthing the words.
Smooth sonuvva gun.
Sunday
Thursday
Memoryhouse - To the Lighthouse
I would give a leg to not have to go to class this morning.
Just sit by my fireplace and listen to this band.
And fly away.
Wee!
Monday
Wu Tang Financial
How could I have forgotten how amazing the Chappelle Show was?
Diversify your bonds, nigga.
Cool girls making cool music: "Girl Power"
Song sample:
Keri Hilson f. Keyshia Cole & Nicki Minaj, “Get Ya Money Up” (MP3)
DJ Ant-Lo's mixtape, "Girl Power" is a collective of the current divas of R&B and hip-hop.
Some of the tracks here are a little painful - Trina's voice is baddd (not good-bad) -
but anything with Nicki Minaj and her fake British accent on it is worth a listen.
(I need to chase this heavy dose of feminism with Vampire Weekend's new album)
Sunday
Amsterdam Acoustics
Where La Blogotheque cameramen wander and lose focus of the artists,
those of Amsterdam Acoustics keep their cameras trained and unwavering.
Some of these are so strange but nonetheless very cool to hear acoustic.
Cool girls making cool music: Nataly Dawn
Nataly is from LA and she makes nice, pretty harmonies -
not to be confused with stupid, pretty harmonies that lots of
female acoustic singers are making nowadays about birds and nature and tree bark.
Instead she concerns herself with covers of Queen songs and playing bass.
She seems as down to earth as her music.
As her myspace reads,
"there is nothing that makes her happier than making art and
sharing it with lovely listeners such as yourself...except her cat, cleo"
Here's a favorite:
Nataly Dawn - Let Them Eat Cake
And a great cover:
Saturday
Mickey Factz - darkphoenix: #ALPHA (Mixtape)
Song sample:
I've never bothered to listen to Mickey Factz on his own,
and I'm not sure if it has even mattered up to this point,
but now it officially matters.
This mixtape is refreshing, to say the least.
A lot of Phoenix.
And the original tracks are even better.
He gets a bit melodramatic on some tracks ("Ashes")
but it doesn't retract from the gems ("Turn It Up").
Fans of Jay Electronica need to d/l this asap.
Theophillus London fans, you too.
Friday
DJ Earworm's Top 25 Pop Song Mashup
This is so so impressive.
Song/video compilation of the biggest songs of '09.
Makes me so excited for the big songs of 2010!
Big Boi - Shine Blockas (ft. Gucci Mane) (Video)
Start this new year right!
I was going to call this one of my favorite tracks from 2009, but it's more just a leak
because Big Boi's album is taking a century to come out.
I'd prefer more Outkast than solo albums,
but the song still has that super cheery Outkast vibe nonetheless.
Director's note:
I was kickin it at Walmart with Big Boi fuckin' around filmin' him.
I mentioned that earlier that night I had been drivin around with Zach Wolfe scouting locations,
just cause and Zach had mentioned that the streets looked perfect for shootin a rap video.
So it’s 3:30AM and Big says he’s down to do a late night adventure.
I call Zach Wolfe up and he’s 110% down.
We meet across the street from King/Memorial Marta train station.
Filmed in the streets Gorilla Style.
Handed in the footage to Sumner by 7:00AM and
BOOM..Here it is!
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