The Natives are Restless

Local Natives, a group based in LA played the Bowery last night. My first thought upon hearing this band of mustachioed and bearded young men was "It's like Grizzly Bear and Fleet Foxes had a baby!" While that might not immediately make sense, this band has a way of combining the highlights of their influences in novel ways. They do the harmony thing very well. They use interesting orchestration: two drum kits. They have facial hair: check.

Still unsigned, their first EP is due out early next year. At this point they have grown a healthy following in the UK, but I predict we will be hearing much more from these guys.

Sasha has Entered the Building

You've got to hand it to Beyonce. She's a talented woman who has worked REALLY hard to get where she is. Respect. I kind of love her. So when she came up with Sasha Fierce I accepted it with a bit of an eyeroll, like when you're friend is really into something that you think is a little flakey, but you love them so you hold your tongue. Anyway, I haven't really listened much to her other persona...until today.

PrefixMag posted this MP3 of Alan Braxe's dub remix of Beyonce's "Broken Hearted Girl". It's really good. Granted, this isn't pure Sasha: she's been glossed over with Braxe's magic, but still...

Do you have your ticket yet?

Kurt Vile plays Mercury Lounge tomorrow night, October 7th. This show should be pretty good. I saw him play at Automotive High in August where his music struck me as beautiful, melancholy and even a little bit bratty. It works...

Vile's album, Childish Prodigy, out on Matador, dropped yesterday. I've been waiting so patiently...

Lady and the Cyborg

Florence Welch, of the UK's Florence and the Machine is a force. At 23, she put out a record that wrestled for the no.1 spot with none other than our beloved MJ in the UK. I've never seen her live, but from the sounds of the tracks on Lungs (out on Island Records since July 2009), this lady has a serious set of them. Lungs, that is. She can summon up the soul-inspired howling vocals of Janis Joplin or she can croon coyly, a la Fiona Apple. I see her music as a beautiful testament to all the strong women artists who have graced our ears throughout the decades.

On "Raise it Up" she harkens back to Pat Benatar's strong vocals and big, heavy backing band. The instrumentation is very different. Sure, you've got your typical fare (drums, guitar, piano, electronics) but also a harp (generously featured throughout the record) and occasionally, a chorus, like on "I'm Not Calling You a Liar." As with the music, her lyrics are daring. Take "Kiss with a Fist" a song about brawling lovers where she sings "a kiss with a fist is better than none at all." I think that's objective, but it makes the song, or the entire record, no less entertaining.

Either way, this is music you listen to with your girls. Or after a break-up. Or before an interview. Or just because you want to listen to something new, challenging and awesome. You know you want to.

Remember the theme from "That '70s Show"?

Well, that's by a real band. For serious! They are called Big Star and are playing Brooklyn Masonic Temple (an awesome venue) on November 18th. These guys were one of the original power-pop masters! And they hail from one of my favorite states...


Source: http://www.spoiltvictorianchild.co.uk/images/BigStar.gif

Their new boxed-set, Keep an Eye on the Sky, from Rhino/Ardent Records, is being met with very favorable reviews. It includes three records (#1 Record, Radio City and Third/Sister Lover) and some demos and alternate takes for the BIG fans. Songs are full of energy and representative of the band's excitement. I always feel that the more a band is into their music, the more their listeners will be, too.

So get ready for some power pop, 'cause it's coming to your five boroughs this November!

Interview with Das Racist

I've been lost in grant writing land for the past few weeks and have emerged, like a butterfly from a chrysalis of stress to find that my interview with Brooklyn's own Das Racist has been published on Ear Farm. Check it out here!

I had so much fun talking to these dudes who are really smart, cool and thoughtful. Hey Himanshu and Victor, if you read this, thanks again for being awesome!

Now onto the next project...knitting album covers from the '70s!*




*Note: Author is full of crap. (Unless you want to fund this project, in which case you may contact her.)

Tennessee...I miss you!

Tennessee made me want to sing, dance (which I did) and eat - a lot! The roadtrip to Memphis (Sun Studio), Nashville (Robert's Western World) and Pigeon Forge (Dollywood) gave me a chance to have some super fun times with my buddies and to learn a lot more about rock 'n' roll. Along the way we sampled bbq, bourbon, fried green tomatoes, chicken, peach pie, pb&j sandwiches, oreos (yes, the fried applies to all the items), a county fair, roller coasters, candied apples, and lots of great music. A friend of mine will be chronicling the trip in a diary format for a super-cool magazine and I expect everyone to read the article when it comes out (I will point you in the right direction when the time comes)! Until then, here's Elvis to tide you over.