SOTW: The Gossip

I had somethin' a little mellow, but I'm savin' it for either a rainy day or a Monday. They're kinda the same in my mind. Sooooo for the Friday pre-party, I'm going with The Gossip.

Beth Ditto (lead singer) totally makes my life. She grew up singing Gospel and now makes rawkin music for people to shake it to. Sometimes she teaches at Rock Camp, but sadly not when I did :(

http://www.myspace.com/gossipband - Listen to "Heavy Cross"


I wish you a weekend of radness.

SOTW: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin

Dig this band from Missouri. And I love it when bands put themselves in the "Pop" genre. It just seems so...honest?

http://www.myspace.com/boris - Listen to "Modern Mystery"

SOTW: The Wet Secrets

The name for this band is kinda wrong, but I'm sure that they totally love that I'm saying that right now. They're called The Wet Secrets (yeah, see? told you).

http://www.myspace.com/wetsecrets - Listen to "Get Your Own Apartment"

This one goes out to all you Millenials out there who are still mooching off the parental units while they try to "find themselves". Don't worry, you'll figure it out, at least until the Daddy's Money Tree dies.

Key of CJ - Now Featuring Song of the Week!

Sup Kids -

Moving SOTW to the blog - I'll be posting a new song each week. Why only one song you ask? BECAUSE I SAID SO, and because I am anti-clutter. You totally have time to devote to one song per week, and if you don't, maybe it's time to dump your needy girlfriend or quit being an investment banker.

muahahaha.

Math Rock: Cuz 4/4 Bands Just Suck

People have been freaking out about the Battles record, so you may have heard the genre "math rock" being thrown around.

"It was invented by a friend of ours as a derogatory term for a band me and James (Lo) played in called Wider. But his whole joke is that he'd watch the song and not react at all, and then take out his calculator to figure out how good the song was. So he'd call it math rock, and it was a total diss, as it should be". - Matt Sweeney from Chavez

Basically math rock is when musicians screw around with time signatures and meters to create delays, twists, random sycopation and CONFUSION! If it sounds off...don't worry, it's supposed to. And what about lyrics? You won't usually hear them in math rock - forget overdubbing cuz they're just another sound.

Early bands that started experimenting with meters and time signatures range from Captain Beefheart and Frank Zappa, to Pink Floyd and Genesis - but they were all thrown into the genre we know as "progressive rock." Canadian punks Nomeansno are hailed by critics as the "secret influence" of math rock with their "whiplash tempo shifts".

Other math rock bands you may have heard of include Explosions in the Sky, Deerhoof, 65DaysofStatic, Q and Not U, Forward Russia, and, of course, Battles.

The Death of Punk Planet

"But it is also true that great things end, and the best things end far too quickly." - Dave Maher, co-founder of Punk Planet

I'm not gonna lie and say that I was a die-hard punk planet fan, but that's only because it's not until now that I have the dough to subscribe to magazines.

For those of you who don't know, here's a brief background on Punk Planet. It was a print run punk zine out of Chicago that featured artist interviews, album reviews and articles on issues revolving around punk subculture (feminism, activism, etc). A truly smart zine - so much more than what people would classify as punk now. It started in 1994, and it ended today.

So why should you care? This is just more evidence of how the internet is rocking the music industry. Just as CDs are turning into USB Sticks, zines are turning into social networking sites. Eventually, music won't be tangible.

http://www.punkplanet.com/

Pandora Loves You Thi$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ Much

Haven't mentioned the freakout about internet streaming royalties in a while...so here's an update.

According to Coolfer, webcasters have to pay a minimum fee of $500 per channel streamed. There used to be a cap at 2,500, but not no more. So think about it - on Pandora, you got your Ryan Adams Channel for rainy days, your Of Montreal Channel to wake you up on Mondays, and your Gallows Channel for when you're super ultra pissed off and wanna break stuff.

Basically, if you created a different channel for every different mood, Pandora would owe a million buhgillion dollars.

If that aint love...I don't know what is.

Emo 3: The Music

Believe it or not - when you said "emo" about 15 years ago, people knew what you meant, or they just didn't know it at all. It started underground, and it was defined. Now, it's a label that gets slapped on to every kid with a weird haircut.


Some History

In 1985, Minor Threat frontman Ian MacKaye and fellow musician Guy Picciotto wanted to shift away from the violence that surrounded the DC hardcore punk scene, so they decided to move their music in a more personal direction. They formed a band called Rites of Spring, whose innovative and experimental songs created a whole new genre – something their fans started describing as “emocore”.

In the 90’s, emocore began to take on a more indie rock feel, producing bands like Jawbreaker and Sunny Day Real Estate. “Indie Emo” was highly influenced by another one of MacKaye’s projects, the band Fugazi, and indie group Mission of Burma. Bands including Cursive, The GetUp Kids, and Bright Eyes were signed to indie labels and started to generate national attention.

Towards the end of the ‘90s, indie emo wasn’t so indie anymore – Teen People sealed the deal with their article on the new hip music called emo. Indie emo was officially dead – and mainstream emo was born.

The transition was evident in Jimmy Eat World’s release of Bleed American, which had almost no trace of emo whatsoever. But, the public knew Jimmy Eat World was associated with the term emo – so it stuck. Dashboard Confessional accomplished national success with frontman Chris Carrabba’s bleeding heart lyrics. New bands that had similarities to Jimmy Eat World and Dashboard were lumped into the same category – creating what we know as today’s emo genre.

Some Examples

Emo music involves pain - and describes it too. In the early nineties, Jawbreaker was the cornerstone of emo with frontman Blake Schwartzenbach belting out songs about alcohol, regrets, heartbreak and failure.

"There's a white light coming up
You draw the blinds hoping it'll pass
I kissed the bottle
I should've been kissin you
You wake up to an empty night
With tears for two" - Kiss the Bottle, Jawbreaker

Later 90's and early '00s, we saw the rise of emo icon Chris Carrabba and his band Dashboard Confessional. Carrabba would not just use his lyrics to convey his pain, but his voice too (I'm serious - he wrenches in pain). He often sheds a few tears during his shows because he is so moved - and, well, emo.

"Walking away.
It's not the same as running.
Is it to you now that you've run this in the ground.
And you say take this.
This medicine is just what you deserve.
Swallow, choke, and die. " - The Bitter Pill, Dashboard Confessional

Now, it's taken an even more drastic turn. Bands like Brand New spill not only their sadness but their anger and resentment as well. In one instance, the lead singer caught his girlfriend kissing another band member at a party. This was the result.

"So, is that what you call a getaway?
Well tell me what you got away with.
Cause I've seen more spine in jellyfish.
I've seen more guts in eleven-year-old kids.
Have another drink and drive yourself home.
I hope there's ice on all the roads.
And you can think of me when you forget your seatbelt,
and again when your head goes through the windshield." - Seventy Times Seven, Brand New

Lately, one of emo's more popular associations with pain is the spilling of blood. Bands like My Chemical Romance and Senses Fail paint bloody pictures with their lyrics - often bordering on being just plain ridiculous. This one is my favorites.

"Can you grant me one last wish
Play russian roulette as we kiss
I'll be your cheap novelty
Blow your brains out on me." - Choke on This, Senses Fail

Emo 2: The Playlist

Before I get into emo music, here's a playlist to reference.

In the spirit of sadness, regret, heartbreak, and being an outsider...I'm gonna call this playlist "My Heart Has Become An Empty Black Hole of Swirling Sadness That Causes Me to Cry Oceans of Tears Sending Me Into A Downward Spiral of Despair of Loneliness and Despair and Sadness and ...stuff"

(To be fair - that was a very poor attempt at being an emo writer. The bands actually do a much better job)

1. Remainder - Rites of Spring
2. Nickel Wound - Texas is the Reason
3. Kissing the Bottle - Jawbreaker
4. In Circles - Sunny Day Real Estate
5. Ghost - Lifetime
6. At Your Funeral - Saves the Day
7. You're Luck to Be Alive - Braid
8. Stay Gold, Ponyboy - The Get Up Kids
9. Embroglio - At the Drive In
10. El Scorcho - Weezer
11. Lover I Don't Have to Love - Bright Eyes
12. The Recluse - Cursive
13. This Bitter Pill - Dashboard Confessional
14. Crush - Jimmy Eat World
15. Seventy Times Seven - Brand New
16. You're So Last Summer - Taking Back Sunday
17. Choke on This - Senses Fail

Emo 1: Congrats, You're an Emo Kid

Been a while...but finally an explanation of this curious term "Emo".

Emo, depending on who you talk to, stands for "emotional" or "emotive". Emo has evolved with every new generation of teenagers. You’ll hear people nonchalantly call it punk, and that's definitely where it came from – but it’s important to clarify the difference between the punk and the emo kid.

Punk: Gives mainstream the middle finger. It's all about DIY (Doing It Yourself). Becomes a walking contradiction once people find out about it. Gather together in essence to fight and protect each other.

Emo: Tend to keep away from the mainstream - but in a different way. It's the suburban kid that feels out of place and is looking for understanding and acceptance. Emo kids are looking for others who feel the same - "better to be together than alone".

Andy Greenwald (Spin writer, author of Nothing Feels Good) puts it best:

"Emo - or whatever you call it - doesn't happen on the stage and it doesn't happen in the diary. It happens somewhere between the two. It is the act of reaching out towards something larger to better know yourself. It's the desire to make yourself bigger by making yourself part of something bigger."

I’m a firm believer that we were/are all “emo” at some point – outsiders looking in…yearning for acceptance, yearning for others who are yearning for acceptance. You know you’ve written some lame poetry about how you caught the girl you were dating in high school kissing some other dude under the bleachers or about how you felt left out cuz you didn’t have a hypercolor t-shirt and mossimo jeans.

You were looking for some understanding and a community built around it. You were a teenager – so therefore, you were emo. Congratulations.

NOW! INDIE MUSIC

I love this...

" What was your introduction to indie rock? Think back. Was it seeing the Replacements on "Saturday Night Live"? An R.E.M. video? A band t-shirt Kurt Cobain wore? Garden State ? Hearing "Float On" on the radio?"

You know it's true:) Read the article and ROFL with all its wonderful indie kid pretentiousness.

Basically, some indie labels have decided to partner with MTV2 (do they even play music anymore?) and put out indie rock compilations. Labels mentioned include Matador (Mogwai), Vice (Bloc Party) and Sub Pop (Arcade Fire). Who would be the distributors? Wal-Mart. I hope the South Park guys find out.

No DRM = $.30

So Mr. Jobs and EMI have made a deal to drop DRM from their music on iTunes. This means that you can copy the songs as many times as you want - so...cool. And they are better sound quality.

But here's the rub...
You better start saving up your extra Starbucks change because you are going to have to chuck 30 more cents to iTunes - but this is, of course, ONLY if you want to actually OWN the music you buy.

This is a good step - it may really bring down the barriers that come with digital music sales. Just be ready to pay.

Universal is going...umm...universal?

You may or may not have heard about Universal Music Group's recent investment in TRACE. So why should you care?

TRACE is "the first and leading TV network and digital platform for international urban music and culture reaching almost 50 million homes in nearly 100 countries and markets, including 9 million paid households in France, Germany, Poland, India, Russia, West Africa, China, Indonesia, Turkey and the Middle East."

So basically it's an international tv network and web site THAT ACTUALLY PLAYS MUSIC VIDEOS. What a novel idea right?

It was launched in Paris in 2003, and now (with the backing of Universal) hopes to expand it's reach internationally to tv, cable, cell phones, radio, IPTV, etc. etc. More chances to bring more music to more people.

So even though the indie kids may see Universal as the Sauron of the music industry, they are really doing some cool things. AND they are being open minded to the digital future.

The Delightful Obnoxiousness of Man Man

I'll try not to write about every show I see, but this one definitely takes the cake.

You just hear the name, and you know the show is going to be ridiculous. Man Man is a group of 5 dudes from Philly - that sound like a gang of 10 year old boys who decided to form a band...a good one. You know the whatchamacalits and thingamajiggers you played with when you were a kid? Yeah, well they had those...and face paint.

The most grown up thing about this band was the lead singer's mustache, which has caused a cult following. Several people in the crowd, women included, sported mustaches that would make even Mr. Monopoly guy jealous.

And the music? This may sound weird, but it sounds like music the the Oompa Loompas would dance to on their nights off. Listen and see what you think.

Free Internet=New Music

Musicians for free internet? What the hell does that mean? Does it mean musicians for stealing people's wireless? No - although that would be way more humorous.

Basically Comcast, Verizon, AT&T, etc. are tossing around the idea of charging content providers (like me) extra to guarantee more web traffic. So, where do Michael Stipe, OK Go and Death Cab come in?

The reason why these artists and others are so up in arms is because some of them made their careers just by posting something on the internet (Tapes n Tapes escalated because of mp3 blogs, Sufjan spread like wildfire over internet radio)...

Musicians don't have the financial means to pay for for the kind of traffic they are getting for free on the net.

"It could be a pretty sad world where money alone buys the ears and anybody that can't afford it, can't get proper placement, is pushed off to the ghettos," said Derek Sivers, owner of CD Baby.

The FCC says it is currently investigating the big internet providers and looking for "discriminatory practices" - a new law may soon be in the works.

SXSW Day 2 Shows: A Night of Some Seriously Good Music...And Scenery

I'm slowly but surely catching everyone up on SXSW...here's what I saw the second day.


RJD2 - There wasn't much energy from the crowd on this one...but he was still awesome. Played Ghostwriter to end it (the now token song on some insurance commercial I think). He's got a lot of talent and surpasses the typical DJ by far. Go see him - and talk to him too because he's a cool guy(how could you not be with a name like Ramble?). Whether or not you're an electronic music person, you're bound to find a song you'll like.


Cloud Cult - Hands down, one of the best shows I saw. I've never heard of them before - there are keyboards, a cello, a violin, a trumpet, guitar, bass, a fog machine (the clouds, duh), and ART. They have 2 professional artists painting on stage while they play. After the show- the 2 pieces go on sale. HOW BRILLIANT OF A BUSINESS IDEA IS THAT?!? In a time when artists feel like all they're doing is losing money to illegal downloading, these guys combine two things (paint and the concert experience) to earn some cash. The art is pretty good, too. The music is beautiful and heartfelt, and what was going on during it was even more so.

And of course, there's my favorite...
The Octopus Project - It's like watching a children's book play itself out - Their amps have sea monsters on them, which they cover with green bags that they have crafted into looking like monsters as well. The guys wear black slacks, black ties and like...seafoam green shirts? (I totally just said seafoam). And Yvonne, who always ends up being the star of the show (literally because she is so mesmerizing), wears a dress and heels.
She plays the theremin, which forever I thought was called a wand, which just reinforces the children's book analogy - she is like...the fairy of the sea creatures - sounds lame, but I swear it's true.
I guess I should talk about the music, too. Rolling Stone said it best, calling it a "space dance quartet". It's electronic including samples, a drum machine, drums, bass, keyboard, guitar and theremin. The beats are hard hitting but danceable. You'll definitely want to move. Watch a couple minutes in to see the theremin action.

SXSW Day 3: Online Radio

So right now, you are probably sitting in your cubicle listening to your Rhapsody account or the station you created on Pandora - and you're probably not thinking about the fact that very soon internet radio could disappear. No more find other bands I like, no more embed this station in my blog (like I did below), no more try out that random band that CJ talked about at lunch for free. Nada.

Basically, the RIAA has pushed for this bill to go through Congress that includes a revised fee schedule for internet radio. The fees are so high that, according to Pandora founder Tim Westergren, they will make "online radio a non-viable business."

Westergren has made a passionate plea for our help. He's also included a link with all our congressmen's addresses. There are 50 million people that listen to online radio - so people are confident that this will change.

One of those people is Tim Quirk, Executive Editor of Rhapsody. He's confident that there's no way these fees will stay this high - and Rhapsody will continue to be a major hub for internet radio users and paid promotion for musicians.

For inner lawyer in all of us (and don't pretend like there isn't), here's a blog post from an attorney familiar with the process.

SXSW Day 2: Google and Music

Lately, there's been a lot of negativity towards Google and YouTube because of copyright and royalties, but I'm not gonna get into it.

Instead, I'll tell you how using Google can help bands...for free

FREE FREE FREE

Blogger - All bands need to have a web presence...whether it be myspace managed by your 13 year old sister or a site your bassist created in the back of the van while on tour (both would be even better). Blogger is easy because it provides templates for you, so you know it won't look like crap, and the WYSIWYG editor (your piece of tech lingo for the day) makes writing a piece of cake.

Google Analytics - Put Google Analytics on your site. It will give you tons of info - including where your visitors are coming from. Then, you can book a show there.

Google Earth - Map out your tour with Earth.

AND OF COURSE...

YouTube- Make a ridiculous video, like, I dunno, treadmill dancing?
And post it. Then, over 9 million views, a 100 spot move up on Billboard, and a performance on the Today Show later, maybe Gary Lightbody will call you up and ask you to tour with Snow Patrol.

Other things you can do...

Wikipedia Yourself - Make sure your band has an entry on wikipedia...and make sure it's at least a little legit.

iTunes - Get your cd on iTunes, and make everyone and their mom review it. Then, make an iMix with 8 well known bands and 3 songs from your band.

SXSW Day 1 Shows: You Know You Wanna Dance

First show I saw was The Rapture - and let me just say that they put it best:

"People don't dance no more,
They just stand there like this -
They cross their arms and stare you down
And drink and moan and dis."

Absolutely true. For some reason, people are ashamed of dancing at shows, but let me challenge you to think about it a little differently -

Think of dancing as a way to say thank you - thanks to the band that plays music that makes you forget all about those TPS reports you forgot to pull, the girlfriend who just dumped you by text message, and the money you don't have that you spent to actually go to the show. Thanks to the band that makes you want to throw your hands up in the air and scream lyrics at the top of your lungs. Thanks to the band that makes you want to bring back the MC Hammer...actually they probably won't want to take credit for that, but you know what I mean. Every time you bob your head, tap your foot or give a little fist pound - you are showing your appreciation. So, stop being lame and give in to the radness of The Rapture.

If you haven't seen them - go. It's a giant dance party - and not one with a bunch of hip hoppers making you feel stupid because you can't spin around on your head - but one with people who dance like they just don't care. It's just plain fun - so go dance and say thanks to Gabe, Luke, Vito, and Mattie.

Also, best concert to take your crush to because they will make you kiss your neighbor...not joking.

The other two shows I saw were Oxford Collapse, who are always great, and Blonde Redhead, who I have so much love for, but are total buzz killers. Don't end your night with them.

Playlist #2 - The "For the Unfortunate That Couldn't Attend SXSW" Mix

These are all the bands I saw (sans Cloud Cult, which you will hear about later)...with a little extra love for my boys Delta Spirit and Austin natives Octopus Project

Come to the Musick's Cube (Cube O' CJ and Patrick) if you would like to hear this mix....

1. Drop Kick The Punks - The Faint
2. Music is Happiness - The Octopus Project
3. Cheer It On - Tokyo Police Club
4. Ghostwriter - RJD2
5. Sister Saviour - The Rapture
6. I'll be OK ft. Slug - Aesop Rock
7. Dispenser - Cursive
8. In Your Volcano - Oxford Collapse
9. Muscle'n Flo - Menomena
10. Because It's Not Love - The Pipettes
11. Streetwalker - Delta Spirit
12. On the Prowl - The Gossip
13. No Radio - Dirty on Purpose
14. Raised By Wolves - Voxtrot
15. Frenchy, I'm Faking - Architecture in Helsinki
16. Red Sea - Asobi Seksu
17. Elephant Woman - Blonde Redhead
18. People, Turn Around! - Delta Spirit
19. Rorol - The Octopus Project