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Listen: Kevin Drew Remixes Broken Social Scene
Photo by Sanchez and Kitahara
The latest redo in Broken Social Scene's "All to All" remix series features BSS leader Kevin Drew and frequent collaborator Ohad Benchetrit dropping the beat and airing the track out into four and a half minutes of wispy bliss. (Via Stereogum.) It's called the Spirit If Remix, after Drew's excellent 2007 quasi-solo album and you can listen to it-- along with several other "All to All" remakes-- right here.
Crystal Castles – “Baptism (No Age Remix)”
This No Age remix of “Baptism” from Crystal Castles’ second self-titled album sounds like the version of “Baptism” you’d find on Dean and Randy’s forthcoming Everything In Between. If you’ve heard “Glitter,” “Inflorescence,” or “Life Prowler” you’ll know what I mean. If not, think about a fuzzy, ambient, propulsive, dark-side-of-the-boom-box moment on some past No Age track. Then add Alice Glass.
Dirty Projectors – “Temecula Sunrise” (Live At Other Music)
This stripped down “Temecula Sunrise” comes from the forthcoming Bitte Orca Expanded Edition, a double CD collection that includes additional “Live At Other Music” acoustic tracks, B-Sides, and a cover of Bob Dylan’s “As I Went Out One Morning” (not a cover of this Dylan … or this Dylan … or …). We’ve heard “Temecula” acoustic-style elsewhere, but the opportunity to really focus on all those voices is something that never gets old.
Class Actress – “Terminally Chill” (Neon Indian Cover)
Class Actress’s take on “Terminally Chill” is less chill, though a lot icier than the original. Add this one to your Neon Indian cover mixtape, next to Here We Go Magic’s “Deadbeat Summer” and White Hinterland’s “6669 (I Don’t Know If You Know).”
Munk to Release New EP on Gomma
Funky dance-tune producer Munk (a.k.a. Gomma label head Mathias Modica) has a brand-new EP coming down the pipeline, following the release of the La Musica 12" in June. The new record, Mondo Vagabondo, is said to be five tracks of "sunny, romantic" house music flavored with bits of psychedelic rock, disco, electro, and other culturally rich genres.
Band of Horses Play Norwegian Wedding
Photo by Christopher Wilson
Cute overload alert: On September 4 in Tromsø, Norway, Band of Horses delighted a couple of amorous Norwegians by performing at their wedding. Band of Horses played an acoustic version of their venue-appropriate "Marry Song". Watch a video of the performance below, via Twenty Four Bit.
Apparently, the husband, Njål, proposed to the wife, Elin, at an Oslo BoH show, and the band happened to be in town the day of the nuptials and said "what the hell," according to the video's YouTube description. As far as indie rock wedding stunts go, the ante has officially been upped:
Browse Weezer’s Hurley Clothing Line
As mentioned, PacSun and Hurley (the clothing company) are teaming up to sell Hurley (the Weezer album) ahead of its September 13 release. According to PacSun, you and your best friends can buy the album inside PacSun starting this Friday. Also on sale? Limited edition Weezer clothing, as part of their partnership with Hurley (the clothing company). All the pieces come in shades of green, grey, and white, thought not all are explicitly “Weezer” items (as the press release says they’re “Weezer-inspired”). Take, for example, the puffy vest below, which doesn’t advertise your Weezer fandom as much as make you look like Rivers Cuomo:
Summer Camp – “Veronica Sawyer”
Jeremy Warmsley and Elizabeth Sankey are Summer Camp. They released their Young EP yesterday. As you might suspect by the combo of their and their collection’s name, the UK duo’s sweet, mildly shadowy sound ought to go over well with fans of ’90s twee pop and its modern day torch bearers. Get nostalgic via “Veronica Sawyer.”
Silkie to Release Series of Singles Leading Up to New Album
One of London's many outstanding dubstep patrons, Silkie, has some pretty big plans in the works leading up to the release of his new sophomore album.
Watch the Fucked Up/Jonas Brothers Drum Battle
Back in January, we reported that Fucked Up guitarist Ben Cook had landed a gig as an extra in the Jonas Brothers movie Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, playing a drummer-- even though he doesn't even play drums in real life. In an interview with Spinner, Cook went so far as to call the JBs "chilled-back guys," which is good to know. Well, Cook's cameo is now online, and not only does he play the drums in the movie, he actually engages in a moment of dueling drum solos with Jonas Brother Nick.
In the pretty amazing clip, you'll notice that Cook does a pretty good job playing both a drummer and someone who could conceivably be in a squeaky-clean Disney band. Also: Great hat. Watch the scene below, in all its 30-second glory, via Punknews.
Surfer Blood – “Floating Vibes” Video
Surfer Blood act out late night/early morning TV favorites, like local newscasts, home improvement shows, accident lawyer commercials, cooking shows, home shopping networks, etc. in this lo-fi video for the first track on Astro Coast. The video was directed by G. Warner and Ralphael Blanco.
Lady Gaga, Peacemaker, Breaks Up A Fight At Her Concert
Lady Gaga interrupted her own show in Washington, D.C. last night to end a fight breaking out in the audience. “Stop fighting!” demanded the pop star, stopping halfway through her song “Monster” when she saw two concertgoers throwing punches in the crowd. “Do not fight at this show!” Watch the live footage below, and don’t you dare throw fisticuffs at the Monster Ball!
“Are they both okay? I don’t know who hit who,” she asks from the stage. “I’m sorry. I just don’t want you to fight. This is all about love and unity and happiness… only fake monster fighting.” Didn’t they see her Vanity Fair cover? All the lady wants is peace!
Maybe Gaga can use some of her skills at procuring harmony to convince PETA to lighten up on her and the meat she chooses to wear.
Video: Surfer Blood: "Floating Vibes"
The video for Surfer Blood's Astro Coast cut "Floating Vibes" features the members of the band playacting in spoofs of TV tropes we all know and (sort of) love-- the loopy astrologist, the impossibly serious news anchor, the disgusting-looking informercial, and so forth. Hijinks ensue in the clip, which was directed by G Warner, and the whole affair is pretty likable and enjoyable. Hey, just like Surfer Blood! Watch the clip below (via TwentyFourBit).
Marnie Stern – “Transparency Is The New Mystery
Up at ATP this weekend I found myself DJing for friends and staff in the ‘Gum Suite, spinning this song more than once and answering more than one question about it. And now it is free, for your ad hoc friends and family DJ sets. Marnie Stern, the eponymous, third full-length from one of the Stereogum tag set’s most creative guitarists, is another step toward the directly emotional, inventively song-oriented fare Marnie’s been working out since her debut a few years back. The relatively balladic, heart-wrenching “Transparency Is The New Mystery,” though, is the jam of jams on her third album, which is also her best album. It also highlights the particular dimension Zach Hill’s playing takes when he works with Stern, his beastly, busy kit work sawing off few of its edges, yet entirely at home underpinning this vulnerable confessional of self-doubt, and self-awareness, and self. Take three minutes with it, and repeat:
Controversial Music Video Director Romain Gavras Releases Debut Feature Film <i>Notre Jour Viendra</i>
Romain Gavras directed two of the most violent and polarizing music videos of recent years: M.I.A.'s "Born Free" and Justice's "Stress". Now, Dazed & Confused reports that he has directed his feature debut, Notre Jour Viendra (Our Day Will Come). (Fun fact: Romain is the son of political French filmmaker Costa-Gavras.)
2010 MTV VMA Predictions: Who Will Win Best Female Video?
We’re counting down to Sunday’s 2010 MTV VMAs with our picks for the top categories, and we’ve got to give it up for the ladies—four of the videos up for Best Female Video are also nominated for Best Pop Video of the Year. Let’s all give a round of applause to the XY chromosome for dominating the pop music scene, as well as its genre of video. Well done, ladies! Now, jump below for our thoughts on who will and who should walk away with the moon man for Best Female Video—and keep all comments to yourself until we’re finished, Kanye.
BEST FEMALE VIDEO NOMINEES:
Lady Gaga — “Bad Romance”
Ke$ha — “Tik Tok”
Katy Perry featuring Snoop Dogg — “California Gurls”
Beyoncé featuring Lady Gaga — “Video Phone (Extended Remix)”
Taylor Swift — “Fifteen”
THOUGHTS ON THE NOMINEES: We have a feeling “Video Phone” racked up so many nominations just so Beyoncé could somehow be involved. (We just wish they would have honored Bey’s infinitely more enjoyable clip for “Why Don’t You Love Me” instead of her far more mediocre phone-related collaboration with Gaga.) And Ke$ha should just be happy to be invited to the show. We’d say it was a three-horse race between Gaga, Perry and Taylor, except we know the MTV VMAs are about having moments, not actually awarding who had the best video. So, in that case…
WHO WILL WIN: Taylor Swift is a shoe-in. This is the only major category she’s up for, and MTV loves spreading the wealth. (Katy Perry will get her due for Best Pop Video—at least, that’s what we’re betting on.) And even if Lady Gaga made one of the best videos of ALL TIME!, Taylor is still getting this award for the second year in a row. Call it MTV’s “We’re Sorry Our Security Wasn’t Tight Enough To Stop Kanye From Ruining Your Moment” apology gift to Ms. Swift. Plus, the opportunity to cut away to Kanye’s face as Taylor takes the stage is far too TV-worthy a moment to pass up.
WHO SHOULD WIN: The “California Gurls” video was all sorts of fun, and was certainly parodied to death in pop-culture. But “Bad Romance” squashes all of these videos in regards to originality and cultural significance.
What do you folks think? Will Taylor be able to make her Best Female Video acceptance speech uninterrupted this time around? Vote!
Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.Tie a guitar string around your finger as a reminder to stop by Idolator this Sunday, September 12 at 8 p.m. EST for our MTV VMAs live blog coverage! Let’s all roll our eyes in unison at the inevitable (and contractual) Jersey Shore cast cameos sprinkled throughout the show!
M.I.A. Announces Fall Tour
M.I.A. has been having a rough year. Between newspaper controversies, a questionable album, and flubbed gigs, it seemed like the luck she had with "Paper Planes" surprisingly rising to cultural omnipotence somehow backfired. But the singer/rapper/firebrand will try to end things on an uptick with a tour of North America and Europe in the coming months. All dates are below:
Battle Cats: From the rise of house in the '80s to today's juke and footwork scenes, Chicago's circle keeps expanding
"It's so fucking hot in here!" is the cry heard from almost everybody in the building. That includes the DJs, the spectators recording video with their iPods, the girlfriends sitting on stray chairs and buckets, and the kids with red plastic cups full of liquor—but rarely from the individuals doing the actual moving. That is, until one of them passes out from exhaustion. It's Sunday night in the Englewood neighborhood on Chicago's south side, and I'm fighting through a circle of spectators to get a good view of the action at an event called Da War Zone.
The Sight Below to Tour West Coast with Pantha du Prince, Release New Solo Album
Earlier this year, both Seattle's curator of sublime ambiance, Rafael Anton Irisarri (a.k.a. The Sight Below, pictured above), and Berlin's heir to the minimal techno throne, Hendrik Weber (a.k.a. Pantha du Prince), released albums loved by those of us at XLR8R HQ.
Disturbed Bump Katy Perry Off The Top Of The Chart
A week after she unseated Eminem from the #1 position on Billboard’s Top 200 Albums chart, upcoming SNL performer Katy Perry suffers a 54% drop in sales with Teenage Dream and gets bumped down by Disturbed’s Asylum. See what all went down this week with the Top 10 of the main album roundup after the jump.
Billboard notes that Asylum is Chicago act Disturbed’s fourth consecutive #1 album, making them only the third rock band in the history of the Top 200 chart to achieve that feat. But Katy Perry isn’t alone—Fantasia, who debuted at #2 last week with Back To Me, also takes a tumble (to #5).
Four other new LPs crack the Top 10 in the form of the 35th Now compilation (#2), Lyfe Jennings’ I Still Believe (#6), the Goo Goo Dolls’ Something For The Rest Of Us (#7) and Heart’s 13th studio album Red Velvet Car (#10).
Hard to believe Seattle sister act Heart last visited the Top 10 in 1990 with Brigade (#3), an LP that produced this classic light rock jam:
The Top 10 of Billboard’s Top 200 Albums:
1. Disturbed, Asylum *new*
2. Various, Now That’s What I Call Music! Vol. 35 *new*
3. Eminem, Recovery
4. Katy Perry, Teenage Dream
5. Fantasia, Back To Me
6. Lyfe Jennings, I Still Believe *new*
7. The Goo Goo Dolls, Something For The Rest Of Us *new*
8. Justin Bieber, My World 2.0
9. Various, Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam
10. Heart, Red Velvet Car *new*