Today marks Kurt Vonngeut’s 87th birthday. Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Kurt spent his life throughout times as a chemistry student at Cornell University, as a soldier in World War II, and then as an archeology student at the University of Chicago. However, his true passion was his gift of writing and creating novels of satire, black comedy and science fiction.
Sweden’s Air France created and shared their own dreamy remix of St. Etienne‘s “Spring”. Please take a listen to the track below and watch the video in high-res over at Sincerely Yours.
Matt Mercer: Working on this EP took a bit longer than past endeavours. We aimed for something brighter, more pop, without compromising the things that get us excited. I try to avoid repeating myself too much, although there are nuances and details and samples and sounds that are probably common in some of our other output. We definitely steered clear of the gravity of our last full-length and also the vague chip-tune flavor of the last EP.
Our initial starting point was acid house as a touchstone, but as with most influences the finished product obviously veers far off that course. “His N Hers Hibernation” is straight up freestyle with some added quirk. We liked the idea of making 3 fairly pop tracks and then remixing them with people we know and respect. Kid Whatever (one half of Peroxide Mocha, who we also recently remixed) turned out this full-on italo-disco-meets-Hi-NRG slammer that puts a smile on my face every time, and The Astrolabe from Chicago did a really great job of taking our slower original and punching it up a few notches, adding some great 90s throwback touches with some piano riffs and flourishes. Nine Devices is sort of the odd man out with his more sparse treatment of “Water Drops on Burning Rocks,” all but discarding our original audio tracks but being quite clever with his use of Sarah Nixey’s vocal backwards… to be honest, I have no idea what he sampled from her, but backwards it says “So hold me now” which is sort of haunting.
Matt Keppel: From a thematic/concept standpoint, I originally thought of this EP as a homage to house music in it’s various forms. I think my original working title was even ‘The House Sound of Microfilm’, like one of those old late ‘80s house compilations! Just the idea of making a fluid, dancefloor EP whereas our last one was much more electro, kind of brittle, and chunky, if that makes sense. I also had the idea of framing the EP like David Bowie’s ‘Station to Station’ or Pet Shop Boys ‘Introspective’ (both 6 track EPs), but where we wrote every one of the original tracks as a potential single.
The lyrical ideas about the songs for this EP revolved around characters in relationship turmoil, except the first track ‘I’ll Sing Like Billy MacKenzie in Heaven’. That was a homage to the great but neglected (by many) talents of Billy MacKenzie, the late singer from the ‘80s UK band The Associates. He had a few hits in the early ‘80s in England but now is a bit of a cult star here in the US.
I’m intrigued by artists like MacKenzie that come from nowhere, become really big for a short moment, and then disappear into obscurity, but not for lack of talent. He had a beautiful, operatic voice and an insane lyrical mind. Like Morrissey, but weirder. I love completely off the wall, smart and original lyricists and he was one of them. I’m glad his music has been reissued/re-evaluated recently but he still seems to be one of those acquired tastes that will never become really huge and that’s kind of magical in itself.
I just stumbled upon these guys this summer; don’t remember how exactly and now I listen to some of their new album ‘Two Dancers’ almost everyday. I find their whole aura fantastic. Music journalists like to describe how bands create their own world within their music (and I never believe it because they’re usually wrong about the band they’re describing) but Wild Beasts really do that. They remind me of early records by The Smiths or Suede, where it’s kind of loose, hazy, weirdly sexual and strange. It sounds really epic but not in a plodding, like Coldplay-way, but in a crazy, theatrical ‘The Queen is Dead’ way.
These sites are run by the same guy. Don’t know anything about him other than he has good taste! ‘Cracker…’ is more of an art blog, a Tumblr page with a lot of really great images, either funny or sexy. ‘…Furry’ is a blog of random cute, handsome bearded and/or hairy guys who are in indie rock bands. They are labeled as “fake boyfriends” and I think everyone can agree that it’s fun to have fake boyfriends who are bearded and cute. Well, some of us can.
I once saw Jim Kirby perform in Cleveland as V/VM and it was one of the weirdest and loudest things I’ve ever seen. It’s a bit of a blur, but key takeaways were a man in a pig suit illuminated only by his laptop screen and a sort of chugging, rhythmic pitch-bending mangle of Tina Turner’s “Simply the Best.” The Caretaker is sort of the ethereal ghost of that weirdness. It’s The Shining after Jack Nicholson and co. have left the building — the aftermath of a party in the past. There’s dust in the air and this is the sound of how light strikes it. It’s haunting, but there’s something warm and inviting in balance; you don’t want it to go, you want it to stay….
Terre Thaemlitz’s new album as DJ Sprinkles is a great deep house album, reductive but lush. It’s a statement on how house music doesn’t really help us escape, but brings us closer to our pain as a shared emotional and perhaps subversive experience — in addition to his more typical politics about gender and sexuality, how it relates to this music historically. (His monologue about a “Madonna-free zone” is effectively wry.)
The new Warp20 box set is a marvel of packaging. While its contents musically are, for me, a little hit or miss, it’s so well-assembled, a triumph of surface. Uncoated, blind-embossed 10″ vinyl sleeves (5 plates), high-gloss hardcover 10″ CD book packaging, a dense book of all Warp artwork since its inception — it’s impressive and justifies its price. There’s a mixed bag of cover versions on one of the 2xCD sets inside, but it’s practically worth it for Tim Exile’s cover of Jamie Lidell’s “A Little Bit More.” (Tim Exile is one to watch, too — his last album Listening Tree was very exciting to my ears)
Genre ofDubstep
I think some of the stranger hybrid dubstep stuff out there like Brackles, Apple Pips, Rustie is all worth a gander. The straight-ahead wowowowowow-snarrrrrl dubstep stuff wears on me, but the more spry, lively, jerky stuff I’ve been hearing more recently has me paying attention.
I’ve spent the better part of the year collaborating on the creation of DopplerPad which is an iPhone-based touch instrument. It’s been inspiring to be part of something using new technology and marrying that with music in a cool and interesting way.
2 books recently that I found inspiring: Over & Over and Hand Job, both by Princeton Architectural Press. Over & Over is a nice collection of hand-drawn patterns, appealing to the minimalist in me but with a less mechanical, more human touch. Hand Job is the typographic equivalent, focusing exclusively on hand-drawn typography. It runs the gamut from tacky or ironic to beautiful, ornate and sincere. Maybe it’s because I spend so much time in front of a computer that I have an affinity to hand-drawn things recently.
(Toronto Film Festival 2009 Photographed by Ademar Dias for Lifeline Photography)
The Experience of Being a DJ
Written by Lindsay Luv
My background was originally in the music industry having worked in business development at the Orchard and as an agent with top artists like The Raveonettes, as a DJ booker with notable DJs like Eddie Baez, and then in brand event marketing with emerging DJs and artists including Justice, Chromeo, Ladytron, Crystal Castles, Dangerous Muse, Busy P, The Presets and so many others. For five years I worked the business side of the sphere yet my jobs always relied on my ability to seek out new artists and emerging talent. This was definitely an inevitable setup for me to one day pursue DJing although I never even thought it a possibility until my friend, Adam Goldstein aka the late DJ AM, pointed out I should give it a whirl.
I was sitting with him in his room at the Bryant Park Hotel catching up before his set at Deko Lounge in Jersey and shouting some of the latest tunes I had discovered from relatively unknown artists at the time, Canada’s Thurderheist and Dragonette, as well as LA’s own Shiny Toy Guns, as he downloaded them in a fury. Adam loved the tracks and gave me a sideways smile and asked me if I have ever considered DJing…. No, I hadn’t.
When the recession hit and music marketing started to hit a standstill, I remember sitting on my couch bored and restless thinking what the HELL am I going to do with my life! I remembered Adam’s words and I just picked up and jetted over to Guitar Center and bought everything I would need to teach myself to DJ (with some help from my DJ friends). Without a trust fund or a sugar daddy (ha!) the basic facts were I needed to make money to survive here and fast by switching my focus in the music industry. However instead of taking the easy way out-Ipod DJing etc-I wanted to learn from the ground-up no matter how challenging it seemed and eventually be respected for my craft. With my friends the Boyd brothers opening up their clubs to me, and DJ friends like Cindy Kim, I studied, practiced and learned what I needed to start spinning. I practiced at friends’ studio spaces and these venues during the day for hours –pretending the place was packed.
Landing great gigs was made possible by my industry contacts from my past work and thousands of followers on Myspace, Facebook, and Joonbug. Today, after a year of full-time DJing (and always practicing every day) I still feel like I have so much more to learn. To be a ‘DJ’ these days is a loose word, but to be a true ‘DJ’ is a whole different ballgame, and one that I continue to self teach myself every day and improve upon. My business motto is to start in the mail-room if you want to be a CEO, and I apply that to my own skill set and career. I know who I am and where I started and where I am going. I think if you want to be successful at any activity you need to put in the time but stay confident in your progress and be real.
What AM saw in me was my ability to discover new music and emerging artists–I think that is what makes me special in my craft– the same way mash-ups are what made him extra special in his. I was so excited to one day maybe have an opportunity to DJ with him and am so incredibly sad he is gone. He is and will forever remain a huge inspiration in my career.
I dated his nephew, singer-songwriter Pablo, for a number of years in college and fell in love with his artwork. Pablo had a few of his paintings and when I left Boston to pursue a career in NYC he gave me an original piece from his early days to christen my new apartment. The canvas hangs above my bed and his use of a monochromatic color scheme is calming and stunning and sends a message of struggle, hope, peace and love. His work is highly regarded in the art world and I hope to buy more pieces in the near future.
I essentially never stop talking about my favorite band, The Raveonettes! I have grown up with this band throughout my NYC years. They were in many ways my first big ‘break” in working in the music industry. I came here by myself after college from Boston- not knowing anyone and knowing I had to “make it” here to survive.
I began working with the management team for this new band right when they were releasing their very first EP “Whip It On”, and have continued to support and work with them in varying capacities even today. The Raveonettes have released multiple full length albums and have toured with the likes of Depeche Mode and the Strokes, playing hundreds of sold out shows in the US and abroad.
The band is truly original and their sound is unlike any other artist I have heard today. I have seen them perform in major cities– Chicago, Austin, LA, NYC– and my parents will see them this week in Boston. They are both friends and an inspiration and continue to surprise and delight me with each CD released.
MOVIES of The 80s
I am pretty much obsessed with everything 80’s and am known to watch Pretty In Pink on rainy days. I have loved re-discovering my 80’s movie favorites and can’t get over how kooky and borderline creepy Jim Henson’s “Labyrinth” is! I love, love, love David Bowie and think this movie and the music and imagery is simply genius! Some other favorites include Weird Science, Lost Boys, Big, Say Anything, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun and Can’t Buy Me Love. The 80’s rock!
Lindsay Luv MixTape (For Streaming Purposes Only)
I love electro house and the 80’s, so here are some of my favorite tracks of today and yesterday, all with an electric edge! Rawk!
Thanks for giving me this space to share my experience. It’s a dangerous proposition–I’ve got so much to say. I’m like a roman candle. This digital age is where I belong. I’m really excited to have the chance to share this new record with people. It wasn’t an easy one for me to make. Some people approach music in a casual way. I enjoy records that don’t take themselves too seriously, but for me it’s not that way. I always feel like I’m fighting for my life.
Beat Radio has always been an evolving thing, with band members coming and going as our lives and music changed. About a year ago the band sort of imploded and I found myself making music alone for the first time in a while. My wife Liz and I were also going through lots of changes; finding ourselves with a young growing family and dreams we still needed to pursue. Some of these songs are sort of like love letters to her. We’ve always supported each other in our creative endeavors, but in the last year we’ve learned how to do it a bit more completely– more fiercely and courageously. Her favorite song on the record is “Follow You Around”. It’s about getting lost and finding your way back home.
I hope you enjoy the album. It was my first time recording and producing on my own. I kind of learned as I went along. I’d come down to the basement each night after Liz and our boys went to sleep and do weird tape experiments or download samples of strange old synthesizers and field recordings. I brought some friends in to help out after i’d gotten the basic tracks together, which helped alot. More than anything, it’s an album about how music can be a form of escape, transcendence, and joy. It’s about getting lost in the sound.
Safe Inside The Sound is available as a free digital download and limited edition cd at beatradio.org. It’s also available to stream/download at bandcamp.
I love how this website connects different art forms and embodies a unique vision and experience. Here are some things I’m currently enamored with:
Robert Frank’s Photography
I’ve been interested in Robert Frank‘s work for a while now–particularly from the mid 50′s although he did some amazing stuff later on, including the album cover of my favorite Rolling Stones record. I first discovered him because Jack Kerouac wrote the intro to his most famous collection The Americans. Kerouac’s my favorite writer. I’m fascinated by the whole time period really, and Frank captured it in such a beautiful and powerful way. There’s an exhibit on his work going on now at the Met. I’m hoping i can go check it out soon. You can view more of his pictures here.
Mad Men
Me and Liz, that’s our thing-stay in on Sunday nights, drink some wine and watch Mad Men. I probably would have finished the Beat Radio album sooner but we started getting caught up on season 1 and 2 last spring watching it on demand. In some ways we relate to Don and Betty I think. We live out in the suburbs. I take the train to the city every day while she’s home with the kids. I know everyone is already talking about this show, but I’ve never been so into a television show in my life. I talk about it with my friends the way I’d talk about great fiction. It’s brilliant.
Where the Wild Things Are
Another pop culture thing everyone is talking about, but we’ve got a really deep connection it. My boys have always been really big Maurice Sendak fans. We also really love “In the Night Kitchen” and “Brundibar.” They’re strange books, but I’ve sort of got strange kids. I always found the language in them really striking–it’s dreamy and emotional and also really musical and playful in a quirky sort of way. It makes me feel like a kid. My 4 year old son Elijah and I are particularly excited about the movie. We’ve got this routine where we read the book before bedtime and then we watch the movie trailer on my blackberry. He knows every word to that Arcade Fire song. You should hear him sing it, it’s beautiful.
The Diggs
I’ll leave out talking about music this time around because I feel like all I ever do is ramble on and on about music. I will mention my friends The Diggsthough, because they’re probably my favorite band.
Also, I have a blog and twitter account where I talk about music alot. I did a blog post last spring on my top ten favorite records of all time here, if you’d like to subject yourself to a whole lot more of my rambling.
words, music and art complete one another. the mission of musicisart is to show how passion creates feeling and to share on the meaning. old and new intelligent selections always inspire and will forever include uncensored thoughts, music expressions, intense details to demonstrate sincere and grateful appreciation. simply, thank you for reading and listening.
be sure to see our new line of day of the dead jewelry featuring victorian skeleton cameos, swarovski crystals and porcelain roses.
.contact.
if you'd like to be in touch, please feel free to choose the icon below for the networking site that you frequent:
.disclaimer.
mia revolves around inspiration from musicians, artists and writers just like yourself. its always an amazing search to stumble upon people that illuminate. the main priority of the site is to share inspiration and appreciate those who truly understand. all music is in red. please support the artist, everything shared is in true genuine appreciation. if yr the creator and wish to have anything removed, please email.
all nature photography by musicisart. no part of the content may be reproduced without prior written permission.
~*~ recommendations and comments always welcome.
.the magicbox.
You are currently browsing the archives for the visual art category.
