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August 2, 2007
Shorties
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette profiles TV on the Radio and the band's frontman, Tunde Adebimpe.
Few reviews went past without comparing Adebimpe to Peter Gabriel.
"You know, it's better than being compared to Phil Collins," he says, laughing (Adebimpe says almost everything with a laugh). "I didn't really ever think about it until people started bringing that up. I'm not against him at all. I mean, Genesis was better when he was there. It's not a conscious thing. We just have the same kind of larynx."
The Detroit Free Press interviews Nathan Willett of Cold War Kids.
Metro New York wonders if music festivals are the new arena rock.
Festivals can be great for groups such as Clipse, who have critical acclaim and street buzz but not necessarily blockbuster album sales. Similarly, acts such as the Yeah Yeah Yeahs or TV on the Radio — both doing multiple festivals this year — will fill intimate rock arenas in major cities, but a festival gives them the opportunity to perform for thousands and potentially create a stronger fan base. Indeed, a stamp of approval from the indie hipsters at these summits means something — why else would Madonna have done Coachella last year?
Boston's Phoenix profiles local rockers turned realtors.
Bill Janovitz just released an album, Three Easy Pieces, with his band, Buffalo Tom, but by day he works among the manicured lawns of Lexington, closing millions of dollars in sales each year. He declined to be interviewed for this piece, but on his Web site, Janovitz allays one imaginary prospective buyer’s fears in a fake Q&A:
I was at a nightclub last night and I saw my realtor rocking out with Eddie Vedder from Pearl Jam. Should I worry?
Oh, no, no. You see, local real estate has long needed a dose of rock & roll. . . . And when I am staging your home at an open house, I don’t sweat as much as I do when I am on a rock & roll stage.
The Los Angeles Times examines the city's 1967 music scene.
The Daily Californian interviews music blogger Oliver Wang (Soul Sides).
Daily Californian: You post a lot of MP3s, even if for a short time—what do you feel your role is in getting music to the public?
Oliver Wang: I’ve always been aware I’ve operated in a legal gray area. I’ve always been very conscientious that if an artist, label or rights holder has an issue with me posting their music, I take it down immediately.
That said, with most of the music I’m putting up, I’ll hear from the artist or the family of the artist, and it’s all appreciation—I’ve only had one case where someone had a problem with it. To me, I started audioblogging as an extension of doing radio—I don’t see it as being fundamentally different, because you’re playing songs to introduce them to the public. And although I’m operating in more of a legal gray area, I think both serve the same function through a different medium; the things I don’t do on Soul Sides I wouldn’t do on the radio. I won’t play or share an album in its entirety. I put up sound files that are decent enough to listen to, but aren’t audiophile quality.
Caribou's Dan Snaith lists some of his favorite things for Pitchfork.
That Truncheon Thing continues its "classic bootleg" series with the Replacements' "Putting on the Ritz" 1987 show.
Forever Geek lists the 10 worst sci-fi films ever.
Drowned in Sound readers discuss the relationship of drugs to musicians, and their effect on the music (both positive and negative).
Former Drive-By Trucker Jason Isbell talks to the Seattle Weekly and Portland Mercury.
Isbell also talks to the Arizona Daily Star.
Bjorn Yttling of Peter Bjorn and John talks to the Nashville Scene.
But while the production that creates the band’s sparkly indie-pop sound is clearly self-conscious, the divergent lyrics that ultimately define Writer’s Block are less deliberate. “We write about things that have happened in our lives,” Björn says. “We didn’t really have a plan with lyrics beforehand—but it seemed when you put it all together, it was kind of a cohesive thing. That’s always something that happens after, even if you didn’t plan it.”
In the Raleigh News & Observer, John Darnielle of the Mountain Goats explains his love for Dionne Warwiick's Legends album (one of the desert island discs he chose for his essay in Greil Marcus's collection, Marooned: The Next Generation of Desert Island Discs).
"Especially for the tracks I cite in the essay," he says. "But there are tons of others on there that seem to come from another world, which is what I look for in music at least as much as the gut connection that's sort of the default setting for a lot of listening. I'm not a 'just the music' guy. I think back story and context really enriches the albums, and the Dionne story, combined with how incredible her voice is, just gets to me."
http://www.sonicboomrecords.com/
Seattle Weekly profiles the owners of Sonic Boom Records.
The Riverfront Times interviews comedian Neil Hamburger.
LA Weekly profiles bands that are the opposite of most of the indie rock of the 21st century which has "sensibility that is downright Peter Pan–ish."
Rolling Stone profiles Tegan and Sara.
The Nashville Scene examines the financial problems facing the Southern Festival of Books.
The Guardian profiles Penguin's line of classic novels with covers designed by musicians (including Ryan Adams, Beck, and Razorlight's Johnny Borrell).
Beck said of the Penguin project, in which each paperback will come with a blank cover for readers to customise: "The idea is to provide something that calls for interactivity. Cover art and all the paraphernalia that comes with albums have always been really important to me. I'm one of the people who need a visual crutch for music."
St. Vincent's Annie Clark talks to the Phoenix New Times.
"I kind of relinquished myself from worrying about [success] and just concentrate on making music I like. Picking a song that I would like to hear. I've got ears like anybody. So if I can be as objective as possible with my own work on some level, then maybe I'll make something someone else will want to buy," she says. "But there's no way to know that."
The singer-songwriter also talks to the Arizona Daily Star.
Gridskipper lists "record stores for manic New Yorkers."
Cracked lists the 10 creepiest television roommates.
also at Largehearted Boy:
