New David Byrne and Brian Eno album available for purchase/download

As of today you can order the new David Byrne and Briano Eno album, Everything That Happens Will Happen Today. It's available here in 3 formats - Digital only, CD + Digital, and Deluxe which includes:

* Custom package limited edition design by Stefan Sagmeister
* Four exclusive bonus songs
* A short film about the album by Hillman Curtis
* Holding Pattern screensaver app customized for this release
* Everything That Happens booklet
* Immediate download of all digital files, including screensaver

The physical cd's won't ship until around Novemeber 30th. The digital media is available now. You can also listen to a streaming version of the whole album:



David will be touring, covering the new material from this album as well as the 3 previous Talking Heads and Brian Eno collaborations - More Songs About Buildings and Food, Fear of Music, and Remain in Light. Tour dates are here.

Read more...

Clarification from Fake Blood

Fake Blood is pretty awesome. His remixes are great. Some further evidence of his awesomeness:

Ok... I need to clear something up.

People seem to think that when I do a remix, I ask the artist to record the words "Fake Blood" so I can use that in the track.

That's NOT how I do it.

In every remix I have done, the words "Fake Blood" are created by me chopping up the ORIGINAL acapella, and assembling the words with individual vowel and consonant sounds...
No new vocals are used, only the same one heard in the original song.

And yes, even the Little Boots one was done like that.

SANG
x

ps - anyone figure out who he is yet? I know, but I'm not telling :P

Read more...

Chromeo Fancier Footwork East Coast Tour Dates!

Chromeo has just announced East Coast tour dates:

New neon legs, a new light show and of course, the entire FaFo record, played track by track (we're thinking of including the interludes in there as well)...

Here are the dates:

October 1 - BOSTON, Paradise (buy tix here)
October 2 - NEW YORK, Webster Hall with Peanut Butter Wolf (buy tix here)
October 3 - PHILLY, Trocadero with Midnight Juggernauts (buy tix here)
October 4 - WASHINGTON DC, 9:30 Club (buy tix here)

I just saw Chromeo at All Points West last weekend and their set was tiiiight. You should go see them if you can.

Read more...

All Star Football Tournament happening at V Festival August 16th!

From the Sun via NME:

Members of The Verve, The Charlatans, Kaiser Chiefs The Prodigy, The Chemical Brothers, The Kooks and Travis are set to take part in an all-star five-a-side football tournament at the V Festival this weekend (August 16). Bands from the north of the country will be pitted against bands from the south (The Sun).

Pretty hilarious/awesome. Hope everyone who's playing is careful. Remember when James Ford of Simian Mobile Disco broke his collarbone last fall? He did it while he was playing football with the Arctic Monkeys!

Btw...all these guys are British and this is UK festival, so by football they mean soccer.

Read more...

The Brighton Port Authority - Free Welcome Pack Download

Remember back in May when I was all up on the Brighton Port Authority and the David Byrne/Dizzee Rascal collaboration, Toe Jam (before every other blog and their mother was)? Well, now the lovely BPA is offering a free welcome pack for download if you sign up for their newsletter (which you probably will want to do to keep up with them anyway, right?). Here's what you get:

- Free download of 'Toe Jam' (Database Dance Mix)
- Free download of 'The Tapes Have Been Found' video
- Free download of stills from the 'Toe Jam' video.

Click here to subscribe to the Brighton Port Authority newsletter and download the Brighton Port Authority Welcome Pack.

Read more...

MSTRKRFT at Webster Hall October 10th!

That's all I got info-wise. It's thrown by the GBH folks. Will post the details as they emerge. Start preparing now for the weird Webster Hall crowd and the banging system and of course, MSTRKRFT.

The past two times I saw them weren't as good as the first time I caught them at the B last October, but the time they played Webster in May was closer. Super short review of that show here and some great photos by Ryan, here. MSTRKRFT's show at Studio B in March was decent, but hard to enjoy because the club was ridiculously overcrowded - the worst I have ever seen it. Never got around to writing a review for that one. Here's hoping the third time's a charm!

Read more...

Underworld - interview, Art Jam, and All Points West

A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to interview Karl Hyde of the legendary electronic music group, Underworld, for themusic.fm. They're here in the US to play the All Points West Festival in Jersey City on Friday and the Virgin Mobile Festival in Baltimore on Saturday. They are also here to work on their art installation, Beautiful Burnout, which has been in New York at the Jacobson Howard Gallery since last Friday and will be continually modified through the final day of the installation on the 15th. You can check out the work in progress here, but I can't wait to see it in person.

Check out the interview! Karl had some very interesting things to say about electronic music as well as the events I mentioned above. Also, for someone who has played such an influential role in electronic music I cannot stress how humble and easy to talk to he was - a wonderful guy.

If you are around New York or Baltimore this weekend and have the funds, definitely try to see Underworld at All Points West or the Virgin Mobile Festival. I saw them for the first time last year in Central Park, and despite not being familiar with all that much of their material (just some of their classics and tracks off of their most recent album, Oblivion with Bells) I had an amazing time. It was the #2 show out of all the ones I went to last year, and they were second only to the Chemical Brothers who are my absolute favorite artist ever. It probably was one of the top 10 shows of my life thus far - yes, it was that good. You can read my review of the show here.

Read more...

Soulwax tonight!!!!

Tonight Soulwax is performing live at Irving Plaza + a 2manyDJs set! It is going to be absolute mayhem! I can't wait! Here are my accounts of last year's mayhem. Here is some footage from Soulwax's documentary, "Part of the Weekend Never Dies", which will also be screened tonight at the show:



Radio Soulwax - Part of the Weekend never Dies - Are You Filming


I just checked and tickets are still available here. $30 since it's the day of the show, but easily worth it. See you later!!!

Read more...

A-trak and Boys Noize - Attack of the Unibros Tour

I dedicate this blog post to Busssy Paul and the fact that the beginning of our friendship was based largely on facial hair. And also WTF is up with the spies?! Our ideas are getting copped left and right!

Read more...

David Byrne and Brian Eno - Stange Overtones - First Listen - Tour Dates!

I just listened to the first track (Strange Overtones) released from the new David Byrne and Brian Eno collaboration Everything That Happens Will Happen Today.

I really don't know what to say about it, other than I loved it instantly. One of my old roommates from college once remarked that there is something about guys singing in very high pitched voices. At first I thought she was crazy, but then I listened more closely to the track that prompted her remark ("the Wisp" by Simian) and understood what she meant.

I've come across other examples of it in my listening since then (Sondre Lerche's "Tragic Mirror") and now "Strange Overtones" can be added to that list. Simian and Sondre's tracks are much more mellow and somber overall, and while "Strange Overtones" starts off with similarly high vocals, the mood and tone of the song is gradually lifted by rich instrumentation with the onset of the chorus. I don't think I have ever so instantly loved a track. Well done.

Don't worry David, go download the track.

Also, here are the tour dates (only David Byrne will be touring, not Brian) that have been announced so far:

Sep 16 2008 - Bethlehem, PA - Zoellner Arts Center - Baker Hall
Sep 17 2008 - Baltimore, MD - Lyric
Sep 18 2008 - Newport News, VA -Ferguson Center for the Arts
Sep 20 2008 - Atlanta, GA - Chastain Park Amphitheater
Sep 21 2008 - Nasheville, NC - Thomas Wolfe Auditorium
Sep 22 2008 - Nashville, TN - Ryman Auditorium
Sep 23 2008 - Memphis, TN - Orpheum Theatre
Sep 25 2008 - Austin, TX - Paramount
Sep 26 2008 - Austin, TX - Austin City Limits (Zilker Park)
Sep 28 2008 - Alburquerque, NM - Kiva Auditorium
Sep 30 2008 - Phoenix, AZ - Orpheum
Oct 2 2008 - San Diego, CA - Humphreys
Oct 3 2008 - Los Angeles, CA - Greek Theatre
Oct 4 2008 - Santa Barbara, CA - Arlington Theater
Oct 6 2008 - San Francisco, CA - Davies Symphony Hall
Oct 8 2008 - Santa Rosa, CA - Wells Fargo Center For the Arts
Oct 9 2008 - Saratoga, CA - Mountain Winery
Oct 11 2008 - Park City, UT - Eccles Center for the Performing Arts
Oct 12 2008 - Denver, CO - Buell Theater
Oct 14 2008 - Minneapolis, MN - State Theatre
Oct 15 2008 - Milwaukee, WI - Pabst
Oct 17 2008 - Omaha, NE - Kiewit Concert Hall
Oct 18 2008 - St. Louis, MO - Fox Theatre
Oct 19 2008 - Kansas City, MO - Uptown Theatre (Reserved)
Oct 21 2008 - Lousiville, KY - Louisville Palace Theater
Oct 23 2008 - Cleveland, OH - Allen Theatre
Oct 24 2008 - Ann Arbor, MI - Michigan Theatre
Oct 25 2008 - Indianapolis, IN - Clowes Memorial Hall
Oct 26 2008 - Chicago, IL - Chicago Opera House
Oct 29 2008 - Toronto, ONT - Massey Hall
Oct 30 2008 - Montreal, QUE - Metropolis
Oct 31 2008 - Boston, MA - Wang Center
Nov 1 2008 - Atlantic City, NJ - Borgata
Nov 3 2008 - Red Bank, NJ - Count Basie Theatre
Nov 5 2008 - Albany, NY - Empire State Plaza
Nov 7 2008 - Pittsburgh, PA - Carnegie Music Hall
Nov 8 2008 - Philadelphia, PA - Tower Theatre

Read more...

Sebastien Tellier at Hiro 7/30/08

Last Wednesday the triangle (+Rachel and George, who could easily pass as Sebastien's twin) went to Hiro to see Sebastien Tellier. Firstly...it was weird being at Hiro so early. I think Seb went on around 10. He had a full band with him. When he came out onstage, looking as ridicufrannnssshhh as ever in his white pants, black shirt, and blazing silver jacket we all knew we were in for a bit of a ride.

Going into the show I had heard 7 of the tracks off of his album, Sexuality. I really liked them...but they never really came to fit into my regular listening. They were just a little too mellow compared to what I've been listening to and I could never really find the right time to listen to them. Thankfully Wednesday's show changed that...

The vocals were perfect - sounded just like the album. The band was incredibly tight, really knew the material. Together, their live delivery of the songs off of Sexuality was flawless and breathed new life into the songs. Everything sounded so much richer and you really got a better sense of the Thomas Bangalter (whoops!) Guy-Manuel De Homem-Christo touch that went into this album. Also, hearing the songs live gave me a better sense of what they actually are...ultra finely crafted, electronic-influenced pop songs. People need to remember that pop didn't (and doesn't) always refer to the top 40's garbage we deal with today...it's not a dirty word!

Anyway...that's more of the technical side of things. On to showmanship...Sebastien Tellier is totally out of control. He had a persistent, mild to moderate pelvic thrust going for the entire 1-1.5 hour performance. He was moaning at various points in the evening (especially during the end of Kilometer). He got further with his microphone than most people get on a first date. It was that kind of show. I think overall everyone left Hiro feeling very hot and bothered, but in the good way for once.

There are just a few pics below as well as the setlist. Also check out Paul's review which features some video that Mike took (electro fam-layyy in the house! yeaah!).

Setlist:

Kilometer
Divine
Une Heure
Fingers of Steel
Indians
Roche
Look
Broadway
La Ritournelle
L'Amour et la Violence

encore: Sexual Sportswear

Sebastien Tellier

Read more...

New Music from David Byrne and Brian Eno!

David Byrne and Brian Eno just finished their new record Everything That Happens Will Happen Today. It's their first collaboration in 30 years. David is going to be touring and covering material from the new record, the 3 Talking Heads albums they worked on together (More Songs About Buildings and Food, Fear of Music, and Remain in Light), and My Life in the Bush of Ghosts (which David and Brian worked on together in 1981).

In August the music will be available via this Web site, free for streaming and it will also be available for purchase as both a download and in physical formats. One of the songs will be available free of charge.

It is going to be awesome. This is probably as close as you and I will ever get to actually seeing the Talking Heads.

Btw - My Life in the Bush of Ghosts is awesome. I've had it for a while and have just heard scattered songs from it, but it's really interesting - a lot of awesome samples among other things. I really like the track 'Jezebel Spirit'. You can learn more about the whole album here.

Read more...

Fixed and Fred Falke at the Tribeca Grand 7/12/08

I got back from Montreal around 8 Friday night. Serious fun, which I will hopefully explain more about later. Hit the floor hard many nights. Last Sunday night we caught these dudes, Team Canada at a little bar called Blue Dog Motel. A tiny place with a healthy amount of dancing going on. The music was good. One of the best things about the trip was hearing different music! I'm always battling hearing the same 15 tracks when I go out in New York. Totally not the case up there. Anyway...one track Team Canada dropped was Fred Falke's remix of "Golden Cage" by the Whitest Boy Alive. It's excellent and not played out nearly enough. It was either later that night or the next day that I said to Eddie - "I can't wait for Fred Falke to come to New York".

I get back here, check Dave's takeover to see what's going on since I was in an internet bubble (I only checked my email once during the entire trip- it was awesome) and proceeded to freak out as I read: "-- FIXED BACK AT TRIBECA GRAND. Back where the magic started, the FIXED boys are back in the basement with Parisian remixer of the moment FRED FALKE. " Seriously...I was looking at the laptop saying get the fuck out!

So...the next morning I emailed/texted/sent smoke signals to everyone I knew who would be remotely interested...unfortunately only Solid Goldberger had the good sense to come out. Everyone else missed an amazing live set. Amazing. Possibly unseated the Black Ghosts from the best show I've been to this year.

Firstly...the Tribeca Grand is a great place for a party. The room is small, people get down like crazy, it's great. Got there a bit after 12 to hear JDH and Dave P dropping one of the best sets I've ever heard from them...the whole thing just banged. Around 1:15 Fred went on and played relentlessly (save for a monitor meltdown that held things up for about 10-15 minutes right in the middle of his set) until nearly 4! He played the entire Music for My Friends EP, and tons of his remixes. I honestly am not sure exactly what he was doing up there...I was far away for the first half of the show, but towards the end he was playing all the basslines on an actual bass guitar and it was boss. It was one of those nights where the music was flawless, relentless, and you couldn't stop dancing even for a second. Fred ended the night with a super extended version of his track "Rubicon". Perfect. Here's some pics/video:

Fred Falke at the Tribeca Grand 7/12/08

Read more...

Montreallll!

I am leaving for Montreal in 6.5 hours! I'm only gonna be up for 5 days, but it's going to be seriously the fun. Check out the my Montreal Muxtape while I'm gone. It's full of Frannnshhhh goodness, and random stuff that was playing on Montreal's lovely radio stations when I was there last summer.

Read more...

Devo afterparty tonight

Electro triangle extension, Andrew, is throwing the Devo afterparty at Le Royale tonight:



The last time I went to one of his parties I danced my ass off until the lights came up, aka SERIOUS FUN. Check it out and be sure to RSVP for no cover!

Read more...

Updated Show List

Hello...

I just did a long overdue update of the shows list, which is in the left hand column (now at the top). If you read this blog using an RSS reader, you should also check the site periodically b/c I usually add a lot of shows to the list even if I don't write posts about them.

Anyway...check out the list - insane amounts of stuff coming up.

Also...I am aware of the fact that the "reviews to be posted" list is totally out of control. I'm workin on it.

Read more...

Record Makers starts sister visual arts company

via the Record Makers (the label originally co-founded by Air, home to artists such as Sebastien Tellier and Kavinksy) myspace blog:

"Innovation is the key to everything that Record Makers do. This is reflected in our attitude to signing artists, often choosing to work with talented people whose ideas don't conform to whatever happens to be in vogue at the time, whilst possessing strong concepts that underpin their musical vision. The goal is to help the artists make the most of their abilities but with a certain sense of style, as demonstrated by the label's commitment to producing quality visuals and videos to accompany their releases. In support of this, a sister company focusing on visual arts has been set up by Record Makers as they make their first forays into the world of film production."

Read more...

Tim Fite tour dates

Tim Fite is touring with the Watson Twins and a couple of the dates are in New York:

July 10 - Tim Fite at Music Hall of Williamsburg
July 11 - Tim Fite at Mercury Lounge

The rest of the dates can be found here.

Check out a great little Q&A Current TV did with Tim below (and get yourself to one of his shows!):

Read more...

Chemical Brothers Electronic Battle Weapon 10 and Best Of on their way

via Mixmag:

Good news for Chemical Brothers fans: Tom and Ed are back with a new Battle Weapon called 'Midnight Madness' this summer - and Mixmag was one of the first to hear it.

With some typically scorched synth work and a chorus that's reminiscent of Kraftwerk's 'Man Machine', only a handful of DJs have been given the club track to date, which is due for release early in August on vinyl.

There's good news for collectors too. There's an updated Chems Best Of incoming called 'Brotherhood' with a limited bonus CD containing all the Battle Weapons to date plus 'Keep My Composure', the duo's unreleased electro Spank Rock collaboration.

Tom and Ed w/ their electronic battle weapons at Hammerstein 9/21/08 - photo from here.



If you've listened to the Chems at all you know these tracks never disappoint, and if you haven't you really should get crackin'.

Even Erol (Alkan) loves it, "EBW 10 has been the opening track in my recent sets. Its rather special, kinda almost balearic techno."

Can't wait to hear it!

Read more...

Simian Mobile Disco limited edition t-shirts

Check out the four limited edition triangle-fied t-shirts London designer Kate Moross created for Simian Mobile Disco. The designs correspond to SMD's album title and are (clockwise from top left) Attack, Decay, Sustain, and Release:




There are only 72 of each style made. You can purchase them and other SMD stuff here

Read more...