New Animal Collective EP Streaming

Here

I know you're shocked, Love to Hate gave it an 8.9....Are they going to run out revise their prematurely released best of '09 lists? I haven't listened to it yet so I have no comment, but just thought you'd like to know!

<3 The Elephant

Guilty Pleasure-New Moon OST

This shouldn't be a Guilty Pleasure, the soundtrack contains Thom Yorke, Grizzly Bear, Lykke Li, and Bon Iver among many others. When the track list was released there was all of this fury and hubub around the blogosphere about selling out to something that so blatantly opposes indie culture. I couldn't disagree more about "selling out" as I have probably said many, many times. I saw New Moon, and honestly, enjoyed it. Aside from the obvious porn-y quality, the soundtrack is far above that average teen movie and the artist who participated were undoubtedly handsomely rewarded. This handsome reward allows these artist to take a break from touring and write new, progressive material.

That said, most of the album is a little too catchy. Lykke Li's track "Possibility" could have easily come off Youth Novels. It is perfect within the context of the film and will garner her a much larger audience of album purchasing teenage girls. The Grizzly Bear song sounds just like them, but its not going cause the shows to fill up with cougars looking for some action. It's not the catchiest track on the album and it's too simplified to sound like they wasted precious days working on it. It's stripped down backing up Victoria Legrands vocals for large sections of the track. No love lost there. Bon Iver's song sounds exactly like his work for Blood Bank, so it doesn't hint at what may be in the future for a new album (unless he plans to flush out that EP in this style).

On the whole the album is decent, and for the most part the artist wrote catchy songs, so in some cases it feels like a bit of a departure from the artists' natural instincts. That's fine with me though. I am not sure why indie artists are held to different standards than everyone else, they apparently are not supposed to be interested in supporting themselves and their families. By all means write a catchy song, get these teeny boppers to buy your album, and let them feel overwhelmed by your actual music. Maybe I'm trying to be too much of a soothsayer, but that is my hope for the future of these kinds of projects: more money for the artist, not overcrowded shows.

Happy Holidays friends...

<3 The Elephant

Where the Wild Things Are Soundtrack Streaming

If you have a pulse you know about Where the Wild Things Are. If you are even remotely into music, you know that Karen O did the soundtrack (even though the film was supposedly inspired by Arcade Fire?) Anyway, the soundtrack is streaming here.

Enjoy!

<3 The Elephant

Cymbals Eat Guitars Write Up

NYTimes did a nice little write up of one of my new fav bands....you know, my current music love child.

<3 The Elephant

New MBAR album streaming free! And some other random stuff

Well, it has been about a month since I last wrote anything for you all to enjoy (ha!). My awesome new friend N posted a link on my facebook wall to a stream of the new Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson album. I'm telling you folks, I think he's going to be something. I haven't listened to it fully yet, but I am sure that I will write a review of this one for you. Maybe around thanksgiving at the rate that I seem to be writing these days.

On that note, I'm going to throw in a few other things here, since I've been meaning to write about them for weeks, and I haven't...because I'm busy. And reading a really good book. And not going to many shows lately. Enough excuses, I hate excuses. So here are some new bands to check out. Well, I mean new to me in no particular order:

-The xx

-Fanfarlo

-Woods (maybe... haven't listened enough yet)

-Florence and the Machine (and the awesome xx remix of florence)

-The Antlers

-Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros

-Fool's Gold (which I think is a Luke Top band, who has some pretty cool solo stuff these days too)

-Foreign Born (also some members of Fool's Gold I think?)

-Horse Feathers

-Jack Penante

Did I tell you I saw Cymbals Eat Guitars? Maybe I did, in my last post? It was a while ago, so I can't remember, but they were killer. Seriously, they don't suffer from "new band, bad performance" syndrome. There's nothing wrong with a healthy case of NBBPS, Bon Iver was awful the first time I saw him, so hey, lets not be judgey.

Other thoughts: The newest Regina Spektor, which came out over the summer is incredible. Seriously, pitchfork gave it a 4, but they're asshats, so don't take anything they say for real. They criticized how cute and sweet the album is, but its Regina...thats partly who she is, and if you listen to it and all you get out of the whole thing are cute and sweet, then you didn't listen carefully enough to her words. She's pretty damn insightful. I guess they have higher standards for her than they do everyone else. Not cool folks, not cool at all.

Speaking of pitchfork, you should check out their top 200 albums of the last decade (which is also stupid, because it has nothing to do with the album rankings in each year...it seems to take into account how well the album aged. Music ages in very personal ways.) Anyway, I like the Stereogum summation and comments as always!

Anyway, I wanted to put myspace links up for each band, but i'm lazy. Talkto you soon!

<3>

Record/Concert Review: Cymbals Eat Guitars-Why There Are Mountains at Brooklyn Bowl

After SXSW every year I look at round ups of everyone's favorite acts. A name that came up over and over was Cymbals Eat Guitars, but since I'm a total curmudgeon, I usually don't see the hovering stars that everyone else see after sxsw. That's irritating, I thought to myself, their name is hard to say...I'll never remember that. Well, after 6 months, and many live acts and new albums, I'm still listening to their self released recording. The first time I listened to Why There Are Mountains I was reminded of Modest Mouse, but not reminded as in "lacking originality". I just had an instant warm reaction. Perhaps it's the lingering sensation, or the constant growth and stillness in the album, but I think the opening track, And the Hazy Sea, describes the whole album. With its building crescendos, lofty vocals and orgasmic releases the opening track captured me. I am certainly not one whole easily grasps extended noisy guitars, but that is where the strength in this album lies. It's musically strong, both soaring and sinking. All over the place, in a neat and organized fashion.

I had been on a mini-indie music hiatus post-Bonarroo, but seeing that Cymbals Eat Guitars would be headlining in Brooklyn, I couldn't resist. I headed to Brooklyn Bowl for a beer and some live music. Sadly, I missed Real Estate (damn day job) but got there just in time for Suckers. I was having a hard time taking them seriously, because I was seriously curious about Cymbals Eat Guitars. Here is a group of young guys who recorded an album without a label, and somehow managed to become one of the most blogged about bands of 2009 (this fact is totally un-researched, but it feels that way to me). I guess I had an image of 4 awkward boys from Staten Island, with stage fright, and better recording skills than actual talent. I was wrong. So very, very wrong. I don't know why I insist on jumping to negative conclusions, maybe I like the pleasant surprise?? Anyway, lead singer Joseph "Ferocious" D'Agostino (of grocery fame?) absolutely killed it on stage. He was dripping sweat, swaying, bending and folding to his own incredible tunes. The band played a pretty tight act, without too much improv, just a solid group of songs. For a band that released it's debut 6 months ago, I was floored. They all focused on the music instead of trying to be good performers. The good performance flowed out of their obvious untiy. Without hesitation I would absolutely go see them again. I also look forward to the battle of the record labels...who is going to try to snatch them up? Will the take on a manager? Its almost an unheard of success story. These days gaining this level of popularity without a label is commendable, a true sign of talent and grace. Good luck boys. See you again soon.
<3 The Elephant.

P.S Did I mention that Mr. Ferocious is only 20...thats robbing the cradle for me....i'm just sayin....youthful talent is attractive....

PPS They are playing again with Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson at Le Poisson Rouge on October 23rd...you'd bette bet that I'll be there.

Anthem Magazine Host Bone to Party

Hello friends!  It has been a good week here on the elephant front: Jasmina (my old boss's daughter) has found a good match to donate bone marrow!! (Well, she personally didn't find the match, y'know, she's 6...) This means that she will receive a life lengthening (and hopefully life saving!!) transplant some time in the next month.  I am so pleased and relieved, and I know that many of my friends joined the registry as a result of my little cause (read: my incessant nagging).

I just read that Anthem Magazine is hosting a party at Santos Party House on Saturday night to register potential donors, and raise money for DKMS.  DKMS is a wonderful organization that spearheaded the hunt for Jasmina's donor.  They tirelessly worked with hundreds of volunteers over the last few months organizing events coast to coast.  

Guess who's playing at this party?  Real Estate!  Remember them?  Okay, well you should, because I think that they might get big...they have a lot of shows scheduled around the city this spring.  I'm not sure if that means anything, but i like them, and I like that they are involved in a bone marrow event.  And now I really like Anthem....So if you are in the city this weekend, you should go!  I'm going to Boston so I'm going to totally miss out, which makes me sad.  Open Bar from 7-8 PM, free give-aways (including tiffany's jewelry? jigga whaaa?)....   

Ok friends, happy hump day, see you soon*

<3>

The Loom at Crash Mansion, 4/17

I know what you are thinking: The Loom? I though you were going to see Emanuel and the Fear. A more dedicated, organized and aggressive girl would have seen Emanuel. I apparently lack any of those characteristics...I got really caught up in the beautiful weather, and then really, really caught up in traffic. By the time I got to Crash Mansion I was in a mood, to say the least...and have I mentioned how I feel about Crash Mansion? Let me reiterate: not good. I get it, its a small venue that sort of clean, has a good sound system, and isn't full of pretentious hipsters. I guess that's nice, except that I like all of those things about the other equal sized venues. Crash Mansion is an attempt to bring a little tiny dab of indie culture to people who absolutely couldn't find it on their own. The kind of people who think The Fray are indie. So needless to say, I don't like the venue. However, I was on an open tab, and this brightened up my mood considerably, allowing me to get to business with The Loom.

So the first song they played was AMAZING. It involved two drummers sharing one drum set, and the lead singer was playing a ukulele. He had sort of a gravelly, speaky way of singing. I think it may have been "Song for the Winter Sun" which is on their myspace page. I had HIGH hopes for them, as I couldn't really relate them to another band too closely, and they had their own sound. Very percussive, and very strong. Unfortunately, that was sort of the end of my awe. The rest of their songs were all significantly more main stream sounding: catchy, beatuiful and soulful. There is a heavy bluegrass influence, but also a lot of incontinuity. They are very clearly talented musicians, but they lack direction and cohesion. I would put "True Believers All" with "Song for the Winter Sun" together on an album, and "Of Vegas and Vanity" with "Patience for Books". This is not to say that the two sets of songs aren't strong and worth a good listen, because they are, but unfortunately I don't think they are attracting the same crowds. I genuinely felt like The Loom has a lot going for them, but they need to decide where they are taking it. I hope they take the path with all of those brambles, without the ease of the bluegrass carrying them through. I feel guilty being so judgey and harsh, since this isn't a band thats just trying to be cool or weird, they seem pretty genuinely like s group of people who derive joy from music. I would absolutely go see them again in a year. I want to know what they are doing, because I do believe that they have a lot of potential, and that they will follow through. They do have a lot of gigs scheduled in the New York area, so hopefully we will be seeing more of them in the better venue circuit (i.e Union Hall, Union Pool, Mercury Lounge). I actually wish these guys a lot of success, and hope that they prove me wrong, by becoming one of the break out acts of 2009.

Listen to them, tell me what you think.

<3 The Elephant

Emanuel and the Fear

I'm going to Crash Mansion tonight to check these guys out. They are an 11 piece band, thats sort of Ben Folds Five with an orchestra-y? I'm not really sure what to expect, but its free, and honestly, as much as I LOVE Veckatimest, I think I need some freshness on the music front. I'll let you kids know what I think. Meanwhile, take a listen. It might be a little too mainstream and safe ultimately for my taste, but sometimes I just want easy music, okay?

P.S. Has anyone ever been to Crash Mansion for anything, ever? I saw it in Nick and Nora's Infinit Playlist but otherwise I have never had any reason to be there.

Updated Show Listings

Hey Kids, I know I haven't written in forever! Sorry about that, I don't know wtf my problem is here lately. Anywhooooo, I am updating my "shows to see" list on the right there, with a bunch of bands that I think have some potential. I actually can't make it to a bunch of these shows, but I just wanted you to have the opportunity to go if you could....

In particular:
Real Estate
Red Cortez (a bit like Bon Iver)
Middle Distance Runner (they have been around for a while, but I never hear anything from them)
Cymbals Eat Guitars

Also, not listed is the TVOR/Dirty Projectors at Summerstage on Friday 6/6. Its been sold out forever, but I might still see about going, it seems like a completely killer lineup.

<3 R

Beirut with The Vassar Orchestra, and Kaki King

At the Brooklyn Academy of Music last night, every hipster in the greater NY area gathered to act like responsible adults in an auditorium. Apparently Beirut wasn't feeling like being responsible. This was far and away the most dissappointing Beirut show I have ever seen. I have seen them in various settings in the last 3 years, and last night was in my head, supposed to be a transition from Beirut the band that plays mid size, dirty venues to the mature band that can actually hold court in a concert hall. This was not the case.

Kaki King opened, and despite a bit too much banter, she and her drummer are obviously musicians. They filled the space, her skill on the guitar, and his on the drums were litterally breathtaking. I was in awe. This is amusing because I saw her play when I was in college and remember her being crazy good then, but you know, time and beer rot the brain....

When Beirut took the stage, S and I were thrilled. Not only were were going to see Beirut orchestrated, we were going to get to sit! I stupidly believed this farce and wore cute little heels, assuming that standing in an opera house was sacreligious. As I said, I am stupid. The first thing young Zach did was ask that people stand, and come up to the stage. I was PISSED. I really wanted to sit. That was not to be. The thing was that we were seated in the orchestra, so we were on this ridiculous incline, the whole night. People around us were obviously pissed too, and we didn't even have that ood of seats, so I bet that those in the front weren't happy. To top it off, Beirut played weakly. They weren't filling the space, they weren't in tune, they weren't together, and I am pretty sure that ZC was stoned. He was mumble slurring into the microphone and it was underwhelming. Made worse by the fact that Kaki had really filled the space, their efforts were just cutting it. That one horn player who is amazing was there, and that kid who looks like Zach Effron, and the curly haired accordian player, and a new drummer? It seemed like the group was a bit smaller than usual, but that could have to do with the Vassar orchestra being there (its a little unclear to me) (and I think its a different group every time anyway).

As soon as the orchestra took the stage things improved drastically, although ZC was still very clearly making mistakes. The orchestra helped to fill out the sound a little bit, and really brought the music to life. I think one of the things that makes Beirut so wonderful is that the music really has a life of its own, often with lots of random instruments and voices. On the whole, it was still fun, and I am still glad I went ($50 glad? Birthday present glad? Not sure...) but nonetheless, it was better than a sharp kick, so I'll take it.

The other thing, is that I have really high expectations for this band in particular, because their music is smart, and their act is well maintained and put togehter. This show was none of those things. It felt like the cool guy at school was somehow messing everything up. Like everyone had such high expectations for him and he wasn't meeting them. That must be a tremendous amount of pressure. Pressure that I sure don't want. However, that is part of being a professional, its doing things correctlyunder pressure. I think at this point in his career people are no longer giving him a break for being young and inexperienced. I hope he isn't pulling a Lindsay or a Brittney, growing too big, too fast and cracking under the pressure. I am sure he isn't, but I was not impressed.

<3>

Dark Was the Night: An Album YOU Should Actually Buy

Compilations are seemingly rare in indie music, I am not sure why. Or if that's true. In any case, The National has curated a 2 disc compilation to be released by 4AD on February 16th. Just in case you aren't aware of the internet and you haven't already heard every track, I'm here to tell you that should you buy, not illegally download, this album. Not because it's fantastic, but because profits from the venture will go to the Red Hot Organization, which raises funds and awareness for AIDs and HIV. Although true to form, anything the National touches is excellent. And if this isn't enough to get you to go buy the friggen album, maybe this all-star cast will:

Andrew Bird
Antony + Bryce Dessner
Arcade Fire
Beach House
Beirut
Blonde Redhead + Devastations
Bon Iver
Bon Iver & Aaron Dessner
The Books featuring Jose Gonzalez
Buck 65 Remix (featuring Sufjan Stevens and Serengeti)
Cat Power and Dirty Delta Blues
The Decemberists
Dirty Projectors + David Byrne
Kevin Drew
Feist + Ben Gibbard
Grizzly Bear
Grizzly Bear + Feist
Iron & Wine
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings
Kronos Quartet
Stuart Murdoch
My Brightest Diamond
My Morning Jacket
The National
The New Pornographers
Conor Oberst & Gillian Welch
Riceboy Sleeps
Dave Sitek (TV On The Radio)
Spoon
Sufjan Stevens
Yeasayer
Yo La Tengo

<3>

Build Yourself Some Good Karma

Ok so we just established that we all need some upbeat in our lives, but how about some good karma? If you are my friend on any sort of social media (e-mail, twitter, facebook etc) you are aware that I am currently campaigning for people to get their cheeks swabbed to check for the opportunity to donate bone marrow. So why would you donate bone marrow? We all know that it is pretty painful, but what about the outcome? For starters, that chances that you will be a DNA mach to a stranger are obscenely small, only 2 in 10 patients in need of bone marrow will ever get it (this includes from siblings I believe). So that means that your chances of getting called as a stranger are very, VERY small. And if you do get that call? Are you willing to have a needle stuck into your bone? Wouldn't you want a stranger to do that for your child, sibling, niece, nephew, friend, etc? I am both shocked and horrified that people are so unwilling to participate. So if you think that you are willing to do something selfless between now and yor 61st birthday, please follow this link:

Jasmina

<3 The Elephant

Hallelujah Chicken Run Band, where have you been all of my life?

Typically I am on here gushing about some new ohmyfuckingod they are sohotamazingtalentedbrooklyn band. But for once, I found something that isn't from bk, and didn't get signed because of scruffy beards. These are people who have a cause, who are passionate about something. Somehow they really speak to me, in the most beautifully, dancing and upbeat way. We all need a little bit of upbeat in our lives, no? Read this very interesting article. And thanks to Ctang for the tip.

<3

Shugi Tokumaru on MTV

Well kids, it has been over a month since my last post. I am sort of between a rock and a hard place these days. I am trying to update my books so I can be prepared for an inevitable and impending job hunt, but also working like a dog at my current post designing women's clothing. Needless to say, that leaves me with very little time to engage in non-fashion pursuits. D reminded me that I have totally falen off the wagon with my writing recently. Thanks man.

So just briefly, remember that I had a little stint of being obsessed with that Japanese pop artist Shugi Tokumaru? Hes on MTV Iggy (w.e.t.f that is) and you can watch him here. He is so cute.
<3 The Elephant

Via Stereogum