Beck covers the Velvet Underground

Apparently, being awesome and successful leaves one time to do things that are awesome and potentially expensive. Beck is getting together with some friends to do unrehearsed covers of whole albums, and then releasing the 60s-esque layered videos. Here, Beck and crew take on Velvet Underground and Nico first, and this is the video of their rendition of "Sunday Morning."

Record Club: Velvet Underground & Nico 'Sunday Morning' from Beck Hansen on Vimeo.

Found via Stereogum.

Fool's Gold...No, not that Fool's Gold

Don't be confused, but there is another Fool's Gold on the scene, and it's not A-Trak's label, it's a music collective from Los Angeles that is making some crazy music. Their sound is the sonic personification of several African traditions dancing on a foundation of solid alt-rock sensibilities that was built next to a rabbi's house who listened to old soul records with the volume turned up. They've been doing some shows with Fujiya & Miyagi, and Cat Power, among others. So keep an eye out for these guys.

Fool's Gold "Surprise Hotel"


Grab a copy of this track.

The album drops September 29th on IamSound.

PROJECTS 3 "Dirty Water"

AWOL's sound design program, the PROJECTS, has just graduated it's third class, which means it's time for them to drop an album. The album is called Dirty Water, and is written and performed by local youth who completed the 6 month program.

Here's the title track "Dirty Water":



And here's a track "Just Friends" that I did the beat for...



Their album release is at Lake Mayer on Friday, June 26th. Check it out. Support the young people, grab some food, check out some music...

New Video: Grupo Fantasma "Gimme Some"

If you've never heard Texas super latin groove masters Grupo Fantasma, then you're missing out on some essential summer listening.

They've just put out this campy homage to 70s telethons for "Gimme Some."


And their heading out on tour. They'll be in Atlanta on the 31st of July, and there is no doubt that sweating will be an integral part of that show (because it's hot in Atlanta and dancing is going to happen). So wash yourself and apply some deodorant before you check it out. If I go, I don't want to be offended by your stank.

Here's the rest of the tour, just in case you don't live near me:
Tue, July 14th - Tulsa, OK @ The Marquee
Wed, July 15th - Columbia, MO @ The Blue Note
Fri, July 17th - Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
Sat, July 18th - Detroit, MI @ Concert of Colors
Sun, July 19th - Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom
Tue, July 21st - Northampton, MA @ Iron Horse Music Hall
Wed, July 22nd - Boston, MA @ Museum of Fine Arts
Thu, July 23rd - Falls Church, VA @ State Theatre
Fri, July 24th - Floyd, VA @ Floyd Festival
Sat, July 25th - Guelph, ON @ Hillside Festival
Sun, July 26th - Brooklyn, NY @ Williamsburg Waterfront
Tue, July 28th - Philadelphia, PA @ World Café Live
Wed, July 29th - Richmond, VA @ Plaza Bowl
Thu, July 30th - Asheville, NC @ Grey Eagle
Fri, July 31st - Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse
Sat, Aug 1st - Memphis, TN @ Hi-Tone Cafe

New tracks from Kid Syc

The K.I.D. is back with some new hotness while putting the finishing touches on his next release, The Mr. Gold Experience, which is probably going to be the most epic hip hop concept album you've ever heard in your life. No joke. No nerdy one ring to rule them all shit, but some real storytelling from beginning to end in a way that ties a cohesive thread through the entirety of the album, making it a real album and not just a bunch of songs contained in a single unit of packaging. Here's a couple new joints Kid Syc sent over last week.

Kid Syc "Just Woke Up"



put it on your mp3 player of choice...

Kid Syc "Golden"


Take one home with you...

And, just in case you missed it last time...here's a redux of Syc's Hold the Line freestyle, which is quite literally the hardest, yet most tastefully executed, bit of lyricism I've heard in a while...

Kid Syc "Hold the Line Freestyle" (Major Lazer)


For now and later...

Violens "Doomed" + MGMT Remix

Violens // "Doomed" from Violens on Vimeo.

I like this song.

I don't know whether I'm late or early to the Violens bandwagon, but I'm on it. Apparently these guys have been on the road with some folks whose music I really enjoy (according to their press kit):

They have toured and performed in the US with Grizzly Bear, Yeasayer , Handsome Furs, Deerhunter, Chairlift, Telepathe, and Jay Reatard among others. Before heading into the studio to record their debut album, they closed out 2008 supporting MGMT in the UK.

I can certainly see how they would pair nicely with Grizzly Bear, who I think is playing in ATL with TV On the Radio tomorrow, so if you're around the A at the appropriate time, check that out.

Here's MGMT's remix of "Doomed"



Listen at home.

Impersonating Wes Anderson Vol. 2

I am proud to present Impersonating Wes Anderson Vol. 2 - Grab a copy.

This is the second compilation I've made as an open challenge to Wes Anderson, so if you know him, or know someone who knows him, please pass this along to him. I've thoroughly enjoyed all his movies, as well as their most excellent soundtracks, so I've put together my best efforts to create my own take on a Wes Anderson soundtrack. So if you're the real Wes Anderson (and I mean the filmmaker, not someone else who shares his name), then I challenge you to write a movie to this. You can change the order of the tracks if you want, but you get extra credit if you do it with the current order, because I know, after a long career making quirky, visually-stunning films about your interpretation of the human experience (and Wes Anderson, I'm talking to you here) then surely extra credit and undying respect from a random music junkie in Georgia really matters to you.

Here is the track list:
1. "Caledonia, The Second" - Billie Joe Becoat
2. "Eastern Love" - Mogollar
3. "Hua Rock" - Billy & Friends
4. "Pleasant Convalescence" - Audience
5. "Suicide on the Hillside Sunday Morning After Tea" - Euphoria
6. "Roll On Babe" - Ronnie Lane with Slim Chance
7. "Lady Rain" - Savage Grace
8. "Being Is More Than Life" - Baby Grandmothers
9. "She Brings the Rain" - Can
10. "Till You Get What You Want" - Phil & The Frantics
11. "Il Arrivera" - Baris Manco
12. "Sunshine Woman" - Euphoria
13. "Autumn in Rome" - Dorothy Ashby
14. "Ergon" - Brian Bennett
15. "War" - Bruce Haack
16. "Act of Threat" - Berry Lipman
17. "Silver Cloud" - La Dusseldorf
18. "Les Moulins de Mon Couer" - JPM and Co.

Although this is volume 2, I've yet to actually post volume 1, but I'll get around to that sometime soon. I should also mention that the second volume is dedicated to @carrienations and @roboldham, who both enjoyed volume 1 enough to inspire me to create this second volume. Enjoy. And if you like what you hear, go buy something from one of these artists (although most of them are pretty hard to find).

Get a copy.

Soft Black to release album in July

Check out these guys from NYC named Soft Black. They're cool in that way that most folks try to emulate, but can't because the vital essence of it is something so deeply ingrained in the individual that any attempts to analyze it only scrape the most superficial elements of what this elusive coolness actually is...



Listen at home.

I get the impression that the primary songwriter, Vincent Cacchione, has been doing exactly this for years and is only just now starting to really make a living. This is the kind of stuff that people make when they've been living in their mom's basement experimenting with drugs and ardently eschewing trends, until one day they are satisfied with that they are doing, and it turns out that what they were focused on all along is actually sort of cool in a fringe way—like making psychedelic folk-rock (a term which pains me just a little to even type, because these songs rock too hard to be folk, but are too damn groovy (and lyrical) to be full-fledged rock and roll).



The album, The Earth is Black drops in July on Plays With Dolls Records. The tour isn't coming anywhere near the South, so I don't give a damn about it, and you'll have to find out for yourself if they're coming to your town. If you live in Illinois, there's a good chance you can see this live...

Steve Earle Live in Savannah 6/13/09

Outlaw Country legend Steve Earle will be stopping in Savannah June 13th for a show promoting his critically acclaimed tribute to Townes Van Zandt.



The show is being put on by local rock promoters Tiny Team Concerts, who explained the show, which will be their biggest to date, like this:

Steve's intimate, unplugged set in the brand-new ARMSTRONG ATLANTIC STATE UNIVERSITY FINE ARTS AUDITORIUM (Southside on the AASU campus) will mix original tunes from his 30-year career as an outlaw in the country music world, PLUS FAITHFUL INTERPRETATIONS OF CLASSIC SONGS BY HIS HERO AND MENTOR, THE LATE, GREAT TEXAS FOLK-BLUES ICON TOWNES VAN ZANDT.

TOWNES, Steve's just-released tribute CD, has already cracked the TOP 20 in the USA, and critics far and wide are calling it one of the very best albums he's ever made. He was just interviewed on NPR'S FRESH AIR and cable's TAVIS SMILEY SHOW.
There's also a lengthy article on the Earle/Van Zandt connection in the current issue of ROLLING STONE.

OPENING ACT JOE PUG WAS HAND-PICKED BY STEVE, AND TO SAY HE'S ONE OF THE FASTEST RISING STARS ON THE MODERN FOLK-ROCK SCENE WOULD BE A SUPREME UNDERSTATEMENT.

Song of the Week: "She Brings the Rain" - Can

Can is some quintessential kraut rock. From the late 60s onward, Can really had a total disregard for any preconceptions of what their music should sound like. They move from noise to rock to smooth grooves without hesitation.

The sun is shining, but the Weather Channel says storms are brewing, so I figure this will be a good tune for the day.

"She Brings the Rain"


Listen later.

The many faces of "Caravan"

While I was looking for a song of the week, I realized that I have a lot of versions of Caravan, and that they are all awesome in their own way.

We'll start out with what I feel is the gold standard for Caravan, the version by Metropolitan-area-smitten bachelor pad jazz guru Gordon Jenkins. I first heard this version when it appeared in the first season of Mad Men.



For personal use.

Here is a beatnik-tastic version from Italy in the 60's. I actually have two identical versions of this song. One by Primo Canale off the Dusty Fingers comp, and one by Puccia Roelens, from a nice Italian soundtrack comp called Phase 6. If anyone knows who actually did the song, or if they are actually two different, nearly identical versions, let me know.


Enjoy at a later date.

Here is a version done by kings of the instrumental The Ventures, from a live performance in Japan:


Save it for later.

Funky drummer Bernard Purdie's take on it:


Enjoy it later too.

Video from Taste (4-4-09)

Just got the video from the Taste event that happened out at the M.E.A.T. building in April. All the propers to Raabstract, Josh Branstetter, Dope Sandwich and Insomniac Sound for putting together one of the nicest events I've been to in Savannah in a long time. Lots of great art, great music, a little fashion show, and then a dude from Planet 3 suspended in the air by hooks in his back swinging above the crowd. And all washed down with lots of beer. Bravo. There needs to be more freaky multi-media stuff happening here, and I'm glad someone is stepping up to the plate.



The Taste folks are currently hard at work on the Pyro Independent Music Festival, which will be less art show than Taste, but more live music on two stages on the fourth of July on Tybee Island. Bring your sunscreen. It runs from 3pm-2am and it's all only $7/person or $20/car (you know you can cram some heads into a car to get in for super cheap if need be).

The wRap Up

Just thought folks might appreciate a heads up on some good things happening in the hip hop world right about now.

I just finished a review of Raashan Ahmad's new joint for Potholes in My Blog (go check that out). You might know his crew the Crown City Rockers, who are dope. He just dropped a collection of 13 new songs called Soul Power, that is apparently not an album, mixtape, or EP...just a collection of songs, which he wrote and recorded while on tour promoting his last album Push. Here's a real banger called "Day After Day"



Grab it here.

Next up, Stones Throw announced in their newsletter that Mos Def is doing some new stuff with Madlib, Oh No and some of the other Stones Throw fam that will be released this month. Nice. I also heard that he was out with Kweli doing a show as Black Star recently, which is really nice to hear. Hopefully they'll work on some new stuff, because that first Black Star LP is a classic. Here's the Mos Def x Madlib track "Auditorium" that Stones Throw leaked this morning.



Save it for a friend.

That new Dilla album Jay Stay Paid came out this week, and you should definitely go buy it. I heard a track with Raekwon and Havoc on it that is unbelievably good, both spit verses harder than I've heard from either in a minute. It's ill. Do right and buy it. Proceeds go to Dilla's Ma Dukes.

Finally, Tanya Morgan's album Brooklynati came out a week or two ago, and if you somehow managed to miss what everyone and their mothers was talking about, the album is hot. I remember when those guys came through Savannah a few years ago for a show with Dope Sandwich at the Jinx, right when they were starting to really catch some underground buzz. They do their thing, and I'm glad to see them starting to blow up. Twitter was ablaze with talk about this album. This joint "Laura's Song" by TM member Donwill, got sent to me last week, and I'm liking it alot. (PS - this track isn't from the Brooklynati album, it's from his upcoming project)



Put it in on your listening device of choice.

kidkaneval Remixes

With kidkaneval's 3rd album about to drop later this year, his label, First Word is releasing a compilation of remixes off his first two records. This Vadim remix is really nice. Breezy, digital sunshine all chopped up and iced with sugar pop meets jazz vocals from Kissey.

DJ Vadim's remix of "When I Dig" ft. Kissey Asplund and Blu


Download.

Grab a nice DJ mix from the kid featuring a tasteful selection of hip hop, dubstep and future beat tracks.

Keep an eye out for kidkaneval's 3rd album "Basho Basho" later this summer.

Statts Benefit - June 12 @ Savannah Station

In the early morning hours of June 28, 2008, Jason Statts and Dave Williams were on their way to meet up with friends after the debut show of their band Surt the Destroyer. They were tragically and unnecessarily shot on a street in Ardsley Park, leaving Statts paralyzed.

The music community has done an amazing job of rallying around this cause and helping support Statts. There have been concerts and auctions happening every few months to help raise money to offset medical expenses and more. On June 12th, there will be a benefit at Savannah Station featuring live music, food and more. Tickets are $25 in advance, or $30 at the door, and include complimentary beer and wine (cash bar for liquor), as well as performances by the 8-Tracks, Joe Nelson, the Josh Maul Blues Band, and several other local acts. Doors open for a preview of the auction items at 4:30pm, and the event starts at 6pm. You can get advance tickets at Primary Arts, The Jinx, and several other spots around town.

You want to talk about a good cause, this is it. Get over there.

For more info, check out the Statts benefit website.