Kind & Kinky Zoo

 When I first saw the name Kind & Kinky Zoo I expected them to be an electro-house duo, based simply on the name. I was wrong. The Swiss quartet shreds funky breaks beneath a blanket of flute and organ riffs while being gently massaged by well-oiled basslines.
Check out the track "Kinky Regards" off their recent 7" release.

Sunglasses - Referee

Here's a new video from Sunglasses for their tune "Referee." It's a little reminiscent of "Whiplash" in its structure, but the synth work about 1:45 into the track is a little more thoughtful - not in an introspective way though...The video was shot by the Savannah Film Co. - Shout out to Skip and the team.

Sunglasses - Referee. from Neighborhood Watch on Vimeo.

Face Wrecking Nonsense

This track is devastatingly good. The whole comp is fun. Awesome electronic musicians re-imagine popular music of the last 50 years. Everybody wins. Friends of Friends, I wish we were friends, because you're consistently putting out music I love.

Primary's 15th Anniversary

J-Live's new single

The new track off his upcoming SPTA album...The Diamond D beat is dope, and J-Live definitely laces up the verses.

He will also be in Savannah in March for Stopover. 

Xploding Plastix

There's so much music being made that fuses components of electronic elements, but I sort of forgot how little full blown electronic stuff was being made. This is like a blast from the past, and the animation is fun too.

Check out more stuff here.

The War on Stupid demo

Last October, I collaborated with graphic designer Andrew Davies from Paragon on a presentation called "The War on Stupid Needs You," for Geekend. We discussed how the increase in information available to people hasn't been accompanied by any increased ability to process or analyze that information. We talked about how "data" collectors like scientists, journalists and others need to develop new relationships with digital creatives like designers, filmmakers and illustrators who will translate complex ideas into more palatable info-tainment.
As a demonstration, we worked together to take a 3-part series I wrote about funding for Georgia Power's nuclear development of Plant Vogtle and turn it into a short animated video.

Nuclear Bailout from Andrew on Vimeo.

We Are Trees

I didn't hear about these Brooklyn-ites We Are Trees until recently, but they make the sort of sweet, atmospheric musical drifting that will make you feel like your driving through a movie scene. A vocalist, but not a lot of lyrics, more textural than anything else, and plenty of guitar - that's what this is about. If you liked Grizzy Bear's Yellow House, then this just might be for you.

They'll be in Savannah in March for the 1st annual Stopover festival.

KidSyc@Brandywine "Get It"

KidSyc@Brandywine just won the GA Lotto All Access Music Search and are heading out to record at Capitol (founded by Savannahian Johnny Mercer...) in February. They're killing it. Dallas Austin was feeling them during the finals of the competition.
Video is courtesy of Bob Jones.

Get It from Nathan Jones Photography on Vimeo.

Savannah Stopover

A couple days of awesomeness, March 9-12, 2011 - Bringing a whole bunch of acts to Savannah on their way to SXSW. Das Racist, Prince Rama, Reptar, J-Live, Sunglasses and lots, lots more...

Get info, passes, etc here.

K.Junya

This young fellow has got more potential than just about any young MC I've worked with in the last several years. He can write, he has excellent stage presence - he's talented. AWOL all day. This was recorded over the summer, but I just got around to giving it a rough mix.
  KJunya "PuttinMyLifeOnTheseBeats" (Prod. by Phays) by Phays 

Groundislava

Part of the West Coast future beat explosion known as the WeDidIt Collective, Groundislava drops an EP to whet appetites for his upcoming full length on Friends of Friends. He's got a good thing going - rooted solidly in 8-bit traditions, but with a melodic sensibility and attention to textural details that puts him head and shoulders above most post-nintendo-ists.
 Grab a copy here.

Floco's Modern Life

Here's a quick taste of what's to come from Macon, GA-based rapper Floco Torres. He's in the studio right now working on the group's full-length debut Floco's Modern Life. He came down for the Savannah Urban Arts Festival last year and rocked the stage at the Civil Rights Museum.

Remarc - Sound Murderer

This is one of my favorite jungle tracks of all-time. It's old...like 90s era...

This sound is going to come back around later this year or early in 2012...Drum & Bass is about prime for a good run of popularity - right after dubstep starts to pop up in mainstream pop. Seriously. Just wait. I was in a drive thru chinese restaurant the other day (I chose to eat in rather than drive thru) and the Versus outdoors channel was on the TV - there was an LFO modulated bass (sound) in a track during a bass (animal) fishing show. No joke. Just the backing track during a computer graphic interlude about bass (animal) in Florida....WahWahWahWahWaaaaaahhh.

The Branches

It's rainy and cold here in the South and I am feeling this - whether you're braving the elements or warming up by the fire this will track by Long Arm will get you right.

Trifonic

Some old dubstep from way back in 2008. Shout out to Evster for sending me this seven minutes of mind melting goodness.

Clive Tanaka y su Orquesta

Here's a treat. This has only been available on cassette tape (remember those?), but is now being offered up to the digital world via bandcamp, as well as a limited run wax pressing...You can also get it on cassette, if you still roll like that. Side A is uptempo dance-stravanza - sort of Daft Punk meets Fantastic Plastic Machine...Side B, labeled "For Romance" is more exotica-flavored swinging bachelor pad downtempo.


Check out both sides here, or learn more about Clive Tanaka here.

Tough Junkie - Tron Life

Tough Junkie is one of my favorite producers in the world (he flipped Vince Guaraldi like it was nothing - and while you're at it, go find the first Simple Complexity record, you won't regret it). Duval has produced some ill cats and Junkie's gotta be one of the illest. He dropped this one last week.
  Tron- Tough Junkie w/ Still Water by toughjunkie
If you're sleeping on this record, you should take steps to correct that.

Soul Shinin'

Just finished the prelim mix on this track from Basik Lee - Soul Shinin' featuring An Toine. I did the beat using some chops of a Swingle Singers tune...
  BasikLee - SoulShinin (prod. by Phays) by Phays 

Cold Rain

Ooh wee. This right here....takin' me back...that beat is by none other than Ski Beatz. For the young folks in the audience, he was the guy who laced up Jay Z's Reasonable Doubt.

Peter Bjorn and John remix

The 87 Stick Up Kids are aspiring throwback party rappers from L.A. They're promoting a new single, which you can check out here. It's called "Lights, Camera" and I'm on the fence about it: The beat is dumb hot (almost anything with distorted bass and a variation on the Amen break is gold in my book), but the track needs less lyrics to really bang. I find myself distracted by dude's proficient lyrical abilities. I'd rather listen than dance, but the beat wants me to jump around, so I get conflicted. I don't know, I hope I'm not the only one, but I can't dance and process clever punchlines at the same time.

All that is to say that while listening to the aforementioned song, I stumbled across this other song, which I like alot - a remix of Peter Bjorn & John's "Nothing to Worry About." It features the 87 Stick Up Kids along with U.N.I. and a Swedish fellow named Adam Tensta. The vibe is right on this one all day.

Exit through the Gift Shop

 

If you haven't seen this yet, you should take the time to watch it. Then ponder whether it's real or a clever fake. Either way, it's an amazing retrospective of street art mid way through the 1st decade of the 21st century. I hope that it's fake though, because it truly ices Banksy as a king among men.

RJD2's Glow remixes

RJD2 gives fans a musical handout - a 3 track EP of "Glow" remixes by Candy Panther, Flosstradamus, and Paolo. Grab it here.
The Candy Panther remix is cruising around in bell bottoms smacking asses on a sunny day.

MGMT's Daytrotter session

I can't say enough good things about the awesomeness that was MoogFest over Halloween weekend in Asheville. During the aforementioned last week of October '10, MGMT stopped to record a Daytrotter Session that has just been posted. Check out four songs here, including the chance to download them for free. The Brooklyn-based group offers up something stripped down and significantly less electro-psych-dance-skinnyjeans-pop than anything you might expect if you only heard the first record. The write up by Daytrotter is pretty funny too. I was apparently one of the few who also enjoyed the musical merits of their last album, which I thought had a lot more to offer than most critics who were looking for a reprise of Oracular Spectacular. Having caught their live set, I can also say that, despite rumors of their not being able to put on a show, they can play. Not the best act I saw that weekend, but nothing to cry about either. 

Safe and Sound at the Wormhole

Gus over at Safe and Sound just hipped me to what will be an excellent show Thursday at the Wormhole.

Some excellent electronic music, and no cover...Baby Jazz = members of Sunglasses and Aux Arc...Magic Places is always a good time too...Players = Gus and a member of Shy Violet...not sure about the rest, but if they're up to snuff with the rest of the bill, this will be an enjoyable evening.