So, apparently and understandably, when Animal Collective's "Brother Sport" from their forthcoming album Merriweather Post-Pavillion was leaked a while ago, it was sported all over the blogosphere. And I guess some bands get pretty hyped themselves as Grizzly Bear posted the new song to their blog. Well, the Web Sheriff was having none of this:
This is to inform you that, currently your relevant artist’s web-site is acting as the global-leak-source of the track, “Brother Sport”, by our aforementioned client,Animal Collective, which track is not due for release by Domino untilJanuary 2009 (please see http://www.grizzly-bear.net/media/brothersport.mp3 ). As such, both the individuals collectively trading / performing as “Grizzly Bear” and, indeed, yourself are personally liable to our said clients for all commercial and other losses arising from this blatant act of piracy.
In all of the circumstances, we must insist that you now A. removethis pirated file / track without further delay and that you also B. publish the following apology on the Home Page of the Grizzy Bear web-site :-
Animal Collective – Apology
Following contact from Web Sheriff, we can confirm that Grizzly Bear
has withdrawn its stream of unreleased material by the Domino Records artist Animal Collective:Grizzly Bear wish to apologize to Animal Collective, Domino and Web Sheriff
for the disruption caused to their marketing and release plans by this leak.This apology must be published for a minimum period of 7 days.
As you will appreciate, this is no laughing matter and, as such, should you refuse or otherwise fail to comply with the above request, we would ask you, in the alternative, to simply provide us with the details of the US attorneys, UK solicitors, French advocats and German advocats whom you would instruct in relation to the service of such multi-jurisdictional proceedings as shall ensue.
Noel Gallagher is like the high school bully. You know- the one who beats up anyone because he's insecure about himself...and usually isn't part of the academic elite. Noel is infamous for his random and often harsh comments about other bands, usually ones that are better than Oasis. It isn't hard to believe that Noel and gang have an inferiority complex when it comes to their country-mates Radiohead. So what insights did Noel have for us this time:
"The biggest criticism that the music press have against us Oasis is that we're not Radiohead," Gallagher said.
"Correct me if I'm wrong, they've been making the same record since 'Kid A,' have they not?"
He's wrong, so I'll correct him. Now I can see how Oasis may get the raw end of the deal sometimes...I mean Radiohead gets put on such a ridiculously high pedestal, what English band isn't part of their shadow? But Noel implying that Radiohead's last 4 albums are one and the same is ridiculous since Oasis has released pretty much one album. And that album is essentially a collection of Beatles' riffs. Radiohead's last two albums are quite different from Kid A. I mean, Amnesiac, sure- but Hail to the Thief and In Rainbows are much more guitar driven and less experimental. The remnants remain, but these are actually remnants that started with OK Computer -not Kid A. Bully releases bad album > bully insults everyone else. But Noel had some good words to say- in a roundabout way:
"I like them. Every time I see them live they blow me away, but you know, it's kind of [like] we make very accessible rock and roll music and they constantly make difficult electronic records."
Accessible? Simple and ordinary doesn't equal accessible.
A long time comin', but worth the wait.
The Clientele recorded a song for the children's show Yo Gabba Gabba. The song "Come and Play" was written by a staff writer of the show and The Clientele then took it and made a nice little song. Frontman, Alasdair MaClean said this about the experience:
"This was recorded for an episode of US children's show Yo Gabba Gabba in summer 2008. It's called Come and Play and was written by a staff writer at the show called Jarond. Brian O'Shaughnessy produced the session and Mark Keen wrote the arrangements. Mel wasn't at the session due to touring commitments with Le Volume Courbe, her other band, but she did comment later that she found the whole thing both charming and a bit creepy. I hope someone somewhere enjoys this."
and the song:
PS22 is an elementary school in NYC gaining notoriety for its choir who does sublime versions of songs from artists such as Innocence Mission, Crowded House, and Tori Amos. Of course the teacher is the brains behind it. Mr B. and the PS22 choir have their own blog, which hosts tons of sonic goodness. It's pretty frikin amazing. The coolest thing is their renditions of songs from The Innocence Mission. PS22 and "Mr. B" take on 2 songs: "There," which is the real treat and sung by the entire choir, and a gospel-ish version of "I Haven't Seen This Day Before," which is a solo and set to an un-Innocence Mission-like montage of the kid --who does a great job-- but there's no need to watch the video at the same time. Half the fun is watching the kids' expressions. Take extra note of the African American kid with a white shirt and glasses when they pan to the left.
Original versions:
Not content with simply releasing a song that uncomfortably reminds you of Cher, The Killers have done their best to come up with some artwork to fit the puzzling music they are releasing next week. They have now certified at least one sure failure.
+/- have gone under the radar for the most part during their relatively long indie-slow-electro days. "Snowblind" is an awesome addition to their catalogue. And the video with it Edward Scissorhands-like theme is quite interesting as well.
She's the Duchess and He's The Duke
Kimberly Morrison is the Duchess and Jesse Lortz is the Duke. Together, they're the tag-team duo behind the 2008 release, She's The Duchess And He's The Duke, released
by the Sup Pop owned Hardly Art label. Although depending on which one
of their songs you hear, they could be mistaken for The Rolling Stones,
Johnny and June, Peter and Mary, Campbell and Lanegan, or Bob Dylan and
co. From the standout opener "Reservoir Park" to the
lovely finale "Armageddon Song," childhood friends Morrison and Lortz
implore the influences of the 60s and 70s to construct an album free of
pretenses and heavy on intimate acoustics that are complemented by
simple techniques such as clapping, flutes and a flash of percussion
scattered throughout the record.
Many softer, smaller acts akin to The Duchess and The Duke often
suffer from a lack of substance that may normally be present if The
Duchess and the Duke were a typical 4-piece. But Lortz and Morrison
use the situation to their advantage. Without any restrictions from
drums and bass, the two are free to take the music in any
direction they like. Which may explain why although the album is
sequenced smoothly, every song sounds like it was bred from a different
influence. Lortz and Morrison are able to get away with the obvious
influences because they add their own punk background to give the songs
an edge that feels more contemporary.
Nothing will keep someone away from blogging about music like a lack of quality music to blog about. Plus, I was mostly busy with other stuff. Sure there's been some good albums over the past couple months...but October is when things really picked up. August and September were somewhat of a dry spell. What's that you say? TV on the Radio?? Well, we don't grade on a curve here at The Echo, so no preferential treatment. It's a good album...but not a great one. Alright, the reason I'm on here again is because Obama won. He said change was coming and so this is a natural move made out of change.
How about we start with what is one of the most impressive albums(there's been a few) over the past couple months:
Parts & Labor: Receivers
A departure from their previous albums that I could only take when in the mood...Receivers takes that noise of theirs and constructs it to an intriguing, accessible, throwback indie/emo album. "emo" as pre-2005 emo. The experimentation is applied genuinely which makes you wonder at times what you would categorize this album as? It doesn't matter ...it's simply a great record. Take the excellent "Nowheres Nigh" for a ride:
Raddest recently(relatively) released song: "Lost Coastlines" by Okkervil River. So "The Stand Ins" is no "Stage Names." The song is still one of Okkervil's finest to date. Jonathan Melburg would be a my list for most accomplished musicians of the year. Deerhoof's 'Fresh Born" is also a favorite.
Some lovely lesser known songs:
Her Space Holiday: "The New Kid Revival"
Neil Halstead: "Queen Bee"
The Sea and Cake: "Weekend"
