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Fashion Party

Fashion Week is almost upon us here in NYC--officially Feb 11-18. I certainly don't feel fashionable right now, wearing 18 layers of clothes, but sometimes the right tunes can make you feel brand new. Take this joint right here.

Its a cheeky collabo between Chairlift and Das Racist and I love it! Now to shed some layers...

New Album Update: Dinowalrus

I'm sure you all remember the Dinowalrus. Well last week they dropped their very first, shiny brand new album, %, on Kanine Records. Sweet! The album features some oldies, like BEAD and Cage Those Pythons, but there are some new surprises, too, like East German Western. Check it out for yourself on the Hype! Also, check out my Ear Farm interview with the band.

?uestlove Explains the Complicated Side of Playing Music

I read different blogs. Sometimes I like to read New York Magazine, too. Today, the mag had a little blurb about all the hullabalooh between the late night shows. Too bad Conan's leaving; but you know he's gonna rock out someplace else while Jay puts all the oldies to sleep (my personal opinion).

Anyhoo, apparently, drummer ?uestlove of The Roots, and now band leader for Jimmy Fallon, was really inspired by the fact that Max Weinberg and the Max Weinberg Seven played "Lovely Rita"on Conan's final show. Why? Because of copyright and permission costs. It turns out that playing that one song cost NBC $500K. Wow! Now I realize why I had to study copyright law in music so much in college...

See ?uest's explanation here.

No, please stay

That's the first thought that came to mind when listening to Keepaway's new single "Yellow Wings" off their EP "Baby Style". The tribal/militaristic percussion, which features a strict march tempo mingled with hoots and pitched percussive instruments, gives way to a reverby call and response between the bass and the guitar. Oh, yes! The parts alone are pretty simple, but throw them all together and you've got a delectable, inventive and exciting blend that's like Animal Collective and Yeasayer, among other influences, all rolled into one. Yay!

Listen here, courtesy Pitchfork.

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...