MixTape Showdown Final – Week 6

Cooper kicked Garvey’s a-hole!  Wa-hooooey!  Or, as the Thanksgiving turkey said, “Gobble gobble gobble please don’t eat me gobble gobble.”  As promised, Loser Garvey ate an entire plate of Aunt Bethany’s jello mold.  She then promptly threw up.

Perfect holiday gift!!!

Stuck for ideas this year? I love to share music and was so tickled when i saw this novel old skool prop with a modern twist. Now you can go beyond the 72 mins of a CD and give a mixa.

 

You can customize the picture on the cassette, which houses a retractable USB port and can hold up to a gig of music.

Check out their site at www.makeamixa.com

Happy holidays

Coldplay to retire in 2009. In this economy? Really?

 

 

 

Anyone who knows me, understands that they should just bite their tongue if they don’t have anything nice to say about one of my most favorite bands. Piano is like air for me, so I couldn’t help but breathe in Coldplay when they first showed up on the US radar in 2000 with the release of Parachutes. After I saw them live for the first time in 2001, ( I have been to 6 shows since) I knew they were different. Their chemistry and passion is real.

Two weeks ago, NME, reported that Chris Martin doesn’t want to be in the band past the age of 33. He is 31 and doesn’t think he will fit into his rocker trousers in a couple of years. I don’t want Coldplay to retire. I truly love them and feel they are one of the greatest live bands I have ever witnessed. I felt the same way about the Police, who after five albums called it quits. You have to respect the idea that something is done. Maybe the guys want to spend time with their children et al, but dammit with the release of their new EP Prospekts March, the boys keep pushing the boundaries of comfort to make some great music.

Brian Eno is to producing, as Obama is to change, a master. He has worked with Bowie, James, U2 and now Coldplay. He seems to have showed the boys the concept of space and how musics doesn’t need a stadium shaking chorus, or even words for that matter.

I love that they have released an EP. Outtakes, b-sides, leftovers, what have you, bring it. Everyone is talking about the Jay Z collaboration on Lost. Eh. Good for them. It is ok, but not great. The lyrics added to Life In Technicolor are good, but a more intriguing question, is why do i love the dulcimer? There is one song in particular that has grabbed me and shaken me up. Rainy Day. It is not typical for the band. It has sweeping strings and is fun and sort of light hearted; like a song you would make up on a road-trip if you were the most popular band in the world.

So should they retire? If they do I have to give them props. If they can keep making amazing music I say don’t stop, but if they are going to lose the passion, then they should step aside and not become a caricature. Look at a band like GnR. Is it excess or a fear of not being able to do something else, ala Michael Jordan? I would be the saddest bear around if Coldplay disbands, but they don’t owe me anything.

 

Reunion 2028? I will start camping out now.

Leftovers and tidbits

any of you guys like frou frou? the male half of the band that starred imogen heap, is guy sigsworth….he has produced 2 tracks on britney spears new cd circus. at one point brit brit had some tracks produced by one of my faves BT. the girl does surround herself with talent.

the german government ruled against the band kraftwerk who sued a hip hop producer, moses pelham, for sampling a 2 sec tidbit from their 1979 song ‘metal on metal’. sampling, to me, is a form of flattery. i think a time maximum and acknowledgment are all a band should have to cop to. when it comes down to it, kraftwerk, just wants a portion of the profits from the song.

speaking of sampling, kanye a great purveyor of tidbits, has been listed as sampling; tears for fears, nina simone and wtf??? the alan parsons project!!!

welcome to the jungle. GnR are demanding a public apology from Dr. Pepper, for their inability to deliver a tasty can of soda to everyone in america. sah-weeeeeee

snow patrol is doing a mini tour of the u.s. in december. several of the shows are free. they are skipping chicago. thanks guys!!

People, press play

OMG. i love finding a new band that just consumes me. that is what i have found with “people, press play.” they are a quartet from denmark. hamlet would be proud. their first self titled disc (but labeled as s/t on itunes), is bliss for someone like me. it has a background reminiscent of the postal service, but with gorgeous female vocals, from sara severy. the three gentlemen, Anders Remmer, Jesper Skaaning, Thomas Knak have 2 offshoot electronica projects opiate and future 3.

some standout tracks include “you’re always wrong”, “there is a road”, but the whole cd is just so good, warm and inviting. for any of you that have a soft spot for shoegazing music, aka cocteau twins, my bloody valentine, ulrich schnauss or even the Godfather of music with space, Brian Eno, this is right up your alley.

they are part of new label discovery for me as well, morr music. any of you who know me, understand what a dork and geek i am about music. a lot of my ‘discoveries’ come from looking at label catalogues. after perusing the artist list i spent quite a bit of time and money on itunes updating my neglected electronica files. oliver said it best “might i have some morr?”

ppp is ikea sounding music; accessible and easy to rearrange. so go buy and sit on a new couch and enjoy some sounds that will wrap around you like a fleece blanket.

Beach House – Used To Be

The song is almost as beautiful as the cinematography of the video.

Posted by Garvey

The Killers, Day & Age

Hello, beautiful.  You are the new love of my life.  I eat, sleep and breathe you.  When we aren’t together, all that I think about is being with you and my heart yearns for your sound.  Yeah, that’s right.  I’m talking to you, Day & Age.  You beautiful piece of musical mastery.  I love you.

Oh, Day & Age.  You were a latecomer this year, but you’ll still be a contender for best album of 2008.  I still feel that underlying Killers sound that I know and love, but it has matured and grown.  Your songs are quirky and weird in the way that makes me want to hug them close to my heart and never let go.  I can’t listen to just one of your tracks without listening to the entire album.  This isn’t just some fly-by-night fling, Day & Age.  This is the real deal.  We’re going to be happy together for a very long time, I just know it it.  Thank you for being my new musical love.

xoxoxo

Garvey

p.s. – Please tell Brandon that his vocals are fucking amazing.

Meet London In Chicago

I had never heard of Chicago’s London Anderson until I saw her take the stage at The Abbey Pub a few weeks ago.  The diminutive acoustic rocker makes up for size with a presence that commands attention and brings forth smiles.  I mean, the girl is adorable and talented as all hell.  She seems at home on stage and connects with the audience almost immediately.  I’ve been listening to her music over the last couple of weeks and have quickly become a fan. Her lyrics are insightful and, by the end of the song, have wormed their way into your heart and made themselves right at home.

Check London out while she’s still playing the smaller, more intimate venues, because I’d guess that she won’t be playing those for much longer.

Posted by Garvey

No Doubt Back On The Road!

I was just having a conversation with a few of my friends on Saturday about how I wish No Doubt would hurry up and come back with another album/tour and then I get on Rollingstone.com today and read this!  In 2009, No Doubt will end their 5 year hiatus and head back out on the road!  I am seriously so excited, I almost can’t handle it. They’ll be working on the new album while touring.

Yay.

Posted by Garvey

Guns N Roses, Chinese Democracy

Guns N Roses’ long awaited album, Chinese Democracy, was leaked a week before it’s debut (yesterday); so to plug the leak, GNR went ahead and streamed the entire album on their MySpace page. I have given said leaked album quite a few listens feeling conflicted and needing to hear it more and more in order to construct a good review. In the end, if I were to rate this on a scale of “so bad I punched myself in the face just to have a pain that I could control” to “so good I peed my pants”, I’d give it a, “meh”. It’s not a bad album. In fact, a couple of the songs are pretty good. But, it’s just not what I was expecting. After all of the build-up and years of waiting, I was expecting my mind to be blown and, contrary to what my writing shows, my mind is still perfectly intact. I would advise you to avoid the title track (Chinese Democracy) at all costs, and I’d advise Axl to write more worthwhile lyrics next time he’s going to name a song after one of the most important books in American Literature (Catcher in the Rye). Songs that I didn’t mind listening to over and over again include If The World, Street of Dreams, and Shackler’s Revenge. I’m glad that GNR were forced to stream the album so that I could listen for free because, in the end, I don’t feel that it’s worth the money I’d spend on owning it. Maybe I’m being a music misanthrope, but I think that there’s just no magic in GNR without the man in the top hat.

Posted by Garvey