Imagine the dudes in Baltimore band Ecstatic Sunshine explaining this video to their moms. “Ok, Ma, so this song is about space robot boners and we illustrated that by having silhouettes of melting technology and streams of artificial light. Also it is wordless because the energy of the guitars properly speaks our vibes.” If this track were called anything but “Turned On” we might think differently, like “hey this song is about saving the environment!” but as is, we’re getting horny nerd vibes as filtered through the prism of cascading scales. Someone listens to a lot of free jazz! Not sure if Joe Williams aka White Williams is a horny nerd or a free jazz fan, but either way, he played on this song and the record it came from, Yesterday’s Work, released this past Tuesday on Hoss Records. – Fader

/ David

Google Cale Parks and you’ll wonder if he’s human or cyborg. The confusion will hit you when you read the extensive—and impressive—list of bands he’s been a part of in recent years (drumming for Aloha, White Williams, Owen, and Cex, among others), and you’ll question how he has the time/energy/ability to do it all. But multi-instrumentalist Parks doesn’t want to be just another drummer in the experimental synth-pop crowd. Instead, the Ohio native is working hard from his Greenpoint pad to establish himself in the music melting pot of Brooklyn. His advantage: wit. Parks is a funny guy with bulging eyes, pleasant disposition, and, you know, talent. The past three years have seen the 30 year old go from MySpace stalker to tirelessly touring solo act. One night we sat in the backseat of a Zipcar—innocently (Parks is a real gentleman)—outside The Bell House in Park Slope and discussed where he’s at and where he’s going.

You’ve played in so many bands, primarily as the drummer for Aloha. How did the solo venture come about?

How it happened is I made a MySpace page in 2006 with all my solo songs on it and started adding Aloha’s friends, not looking at who they were. I just started click add add friend add friend backspace add backspace and so I asked record label [Stiff Slack] in Japan to be my friend and they were like, “We love Aloha! Send us your stuff.” And I was like, “I don’t have a solo record. Why don’t you put it out? Ha-Ha.” And they were like, “OK.” And that’s how it happened. That’s how I did Illuminated Manuscript. Then I started writing more songy songs and trying to sing.

 What are songy songs?

 Songs with singing, songy songs!

Do you consider yourself a good singer?

No. It’s hard, I have a baritone voice, so it’s hard to project and then when you strain too hard…I don’t know, this is technical talk.

What are you saying? It’s too technical, I can’t understand it?!

No, no, no! Sometimes you strain your voice and it’s hard to project and blah blah blah. But I just started singing live, it’ll be a year in November, so it’s still a new thing. Singing in your apartment is different. But I like singing. I like to think I’m getting better.

Are you trying to get better?

My mom and sister teach, so I called my mom after the Grizzly Bear show [at McCarren Park Pool] and I was like, “Oh my God, they sing so good. Can you send me some voice training books?” And I did a couple of tours with Passion Pit and Michael [Angelakos] has the most incredible voice ever. Listening to him sing and do his warm ups backstage, it’s not even singing, it’s just weird sound effects and sounds that babies make. Just crazy.

Do you prefer being part of a band or performing solo?

I’ve always been in other bands playing drums. It’s not like they don’t take you seriously because you’re a drummer, but you want to make yourself known. I had other ideas for songs that weren’t appropriate for bands like Aloha.

Are you looking to form a permanent band with Eric Lyle Lodwick and Drew Montag Robinson or just have them as part of your solo act? 

I’m not sure, we’ll see what happens. I don’t want to speak before anything happens, but we’re having a lot of fun playing together. So far, so good. I’m happy with it.

What shows have you done outside of New York?

I did a full US tour with Passion Pit this summer. It was me, them, and Harlem Shakes. I was the first of 3 in an 800-capacity theatre. I played all over solo, but it’s hard to connect with an audience because I’m doing so much stuff on stage. I sing and I play a sampler pad and I play keyboards and I drum and I play cymbals.  

Do you work on the side to support your music?

At APC in SoHo, it’s a French clothing store. I’m not touring till after the winter so I’m just working and only doing local shows for a while.

What’s your favorite local venue to play?

I played at Le Poisson Rouge once and it was amazing. I like Santos Party House.

How early did music factor into your life?

I’ve been playing music all my life, since I was 13 playing in bad bands and garage and all that fun stuff.  My friend David was like, “I have a guitar,” and I’d be like, “Well let’s see what you learned at your guitar lesson this week, David.” “I learned the intro to ‘Dream On’ by Aerosmith.” “Cool, let’s play that.” “And I learned ‘Basketcase’ by Green Day.” “OK, let’s play it.”

Wow, hard stuff.

Yeah, almost as hard as a Weezer song.

So your albums,  Illuminated Manuscript and Sparklace came out in the past three years, are you planning on any new recordings?

I had [To Swift Mars] EP come out in August. I did a remix for [Bear Hands], “What a Drag.” It’s Three 6 Mafia meets Pet Shop Boys with Dylan [Rau]’s voice. Yeah, it’s that good. I have a couple of remixes lined up that I’m working on and I’ve got a bunch of new demos, so we’ll see in what format they’ll come out, if it’s me, my name, or another project, or if I make them into a car commercial.

 Cale Parks and his band are slated to perform at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY, on November 14^th.

 For more touring and general information, visit his MYSPACE or Cale’s WEBSITE . Also check out Cale’s photos from the Polyvinyl CMJ Showcase AFTER THE JUMP!

Is anyone else confused by the weather? Not sure what it’s like near you, but one day it’s sunny, the next it’s like the underside of a sodden moose. It does mean we can snuggle up all warm though, and gives us more excuses for drinking, sleeping, watching telly and listening to music…

So RINGO DEATHSTARR are an ace new shoegaze band…they sound a little bit too similar to My Bloody Valentine, The Jesus & Mary Chain, or even The Cure, but there’s nothing wrong with any of that. They’re a little looser and punkier than the aforementioned though, which sets them apart really. I think they’ve got a few 7″s out, and a self-titled EP/mini-album, so keep an eye out!

“Swirly” – Ringo Deathstarr (zshare)

THE FLAMING LIPS are back, and this time they’re…moody…experimental space/Krautrock-stylee, with guests including Karen O and MGMT…what’s going on here? Not saying it’s bad, just an odd change of direction considering their last few albums! Anyway, it’s really good psychedelic stuff, so it’s worth checking out. Double album too – it’s called Embryonic. Go go go!

“Convinced of the Hex” – The Flaming Lips (zshare)

NEON INDIAN does this crazy lo-fi synth music, reminiscent of Metronomy and the like, with distinctly cheesy 70’s/80’s overalls and a few surprising crackles and pops. Not bad! Try him and see if you like…reminds me a little of White Williams actually, anyone remember him? What happened there?

“Deadbeat Summer” – Neon Indian (zshare)

I’ve recently been getting into STARKEY, who’s an American dubstep producer (from Philly! Go Philly!), and his style is often quite grimey, like this following track. I heard his stuff a while back in various places but never thought to look into it really, just heard a few mixes here and there. He’s got a really nice straightforward style, not too chilled, not too hectic, way focused. Pretty good for beginners of dubstep I reckon, or even those who are looking for something a bit better.

“Pictures” – Starkey (zshare)

Similarly, 2562 has made some impressive tunes I’ve noticed recently. This dude’s Dutch, and makes some deliciously calm dubstep, a little like Joy Orbison who I mentioned recently…it’s got little bits of techno and garage but is overall just lovely calm popping noises and shuffling bass…bliss. Really really nice. I was just going to put up the new Joy Orbison track but I thought I’d put something a little different up…

“Dinosaur” – 2562 (zshare)

I’m a bit late on this, but I didn’t realise how many remixes Four Tet had done for Madvillain – that’s MF DOOM and Madlib’s project by the way. They’re all very different, one of them’s quite jazzy, another quite deep, all really different to the originals, which I’m not surprised about. I’m currently making an experimental video accompaniment to one of the remixes (of “Great Day”), but I think you guys’n'gals’ll like this one, which I was very close to choosing for my video…

“Accordion” (Four Tet Remix) – Madvillain (zshare)

Meet White Williams. Cheeky, chirpy music sung by someone who sounds massively like the Hot Chip singer, Alexis Taylor. It’s definitely got a summery feel to it, it makes me imagine myself tottering around drinking cider in a park somewhere. Unfortunately, I have to just imagine this as the bastard sun has gone in! Does this mean our summer is over?? Probably.

White Williams - Violator

White Williams – Violator (Jack Beats mix)

MORE ON WHITE WILLIAMS

MYSPACE :: RECORD LABEL :: BUY STUFF

“I have more shoes than my girlfriend”, ” 99 problems but my kicks aint one”, “Sneakers are neato”, etc. etc. However, I’m poor and practical, so the whole sneakerhead thing is not necessarily for me but I totally get it. Like if I won the lotto and had left over dollar bills ya’ll, after spending money on womens and altruistic agendas, I would have probably cop these up quick:

and subsequently fall into some heavy cognitive dissonance after these Vans Chukka Del Barco’s drop in Fall 09.

***note…I realize if I had a ton of duckets, I wouldn’t care if every week a new shoe came out that slayed my last “dopest sneaker ever” and that’s the point…The shoe game is a rat race and we will all die. Also tomorrow, word is bond, I start my one month free of Yoga and I’m positive it will in turn, brighten things up on this blog. Look out.

***post script script…whenever I get abused by cops I think of this tune:

Batted my eyelashes and one year slipped away into the next.  All that was left of the yesteryear was smudged eyeliner on my cheek and this charcoaled best of 2008:

Jetset’s TOP 3 ALBUMS

1. – Ra Ra Riot “The Rhumb Line” “Too Too Fast” by Ra Ra Riot
2. – Fire on Fire “The Orchard” “Hartford Blues” by Fire on Fire
3. – Bell “Bell EP” “Echinacea” by Bell

While we love wordpress in so many ways, it is a little limited.  We wish we could paste our imeem player in this post for you to hear, but we’ll have to settle for a lil link instead.  So jetset yourself here to listen to our mix of the year’s best cuts: 2008: The Year in Songs **HINT** If you wave your mouse cursor over the linked songs in the above list like a magic wand, a pop-up player will appear for your listening pleasure!!

TOP FOUR AND SO ON…
(cannot  be numbered for reasons unmentioned)…

- Thao with the Get Down Stay Down “We Brave Bee Stings and All”
- Fleet Foxes “Fleet Foxes”
- Ida Maria “Fortress ‘Round my Heart”
- Laura Marling “Alas, I Cannot Swim”
- Girl Talk “Feed the Animals
- Ponytail “Ice Cream Spiritual”
- Vampire Weekend “Vampire Weekend”
- Jolie Holland “The Living and the Dead”

Where are the diamonds of yesteryear? Where is this year’s “Rise Above”? There just isn’t.
Still looking for that shining masterpiece for the year… there are plenty of solid choices,
but nothing that stands up by itself outright and promises to be timelessly classic and shattering!

OTHER BESTS

Best concert of ‘08 is a two-way Balto-tie:
–White Williams, Ecstatic Sunshine, and Rings at the O-Bar
–F-yeah Tour with Death Set, Team Robespierre, Matt & Kim, and Monotonix

Best New Artist: Olga Bell!!
Classically trained pianist with sweet Russo voice and a penchant for
sparkling electronics — oh how it does befit her surname!

Best Guilty Pleasure of the Year: Those Dancing Days (I love Swedish teenie boppers, I really do!) and Ben Folds with Regina Spektor (of course, of course) — these songs truly tested our virtuous fortitude!

Too much productivity this year (Best of the Prolific): Herman Dune (minus the sexy umlaut)
– how many EPs and a full length this year? How do I even begin to sort through it all?

Best Anachronistic Anthem of OhEight: “Our Friends Appear Like the Dawn” by Bodies of Water
(how come I didn’t discover them earlier? Why am I not so pleased with their contemporary release?)

Best Contemporaneous Anthem of OhEight: “Swimming Pools” ?? (Or is it still too early to tell…?)

————————————————————————————————————-

OVER-RATED
Once excited about yet overrated? -Lykke Li “Youth Novels”
Even more overrated — MGMT… ugh… Can we live that down yet?!

Near hits (near miss): -Santogold? (poppy goodness, but warranting top ranking stature?) She & Him? (Cute but solid enough?)

Still not sure about: -Johnny Flynn and the Sussex Wit? Larkin Grimm’s “Parplar”?

Disappointed about: Josephine Foster’s new album

Nifty Gifty! Amnesia by Fire on Fire

Via Milk

01. Van She – Changes (G.L.O.V.E.S. Remix) [mp3]
02. The Energies – Born Again Runner (Fred Falke Edit) [mp3]
03. Little Boots – Stuck On Repeat (Fake Blood Remix) [mp3]
04. Anoraak – The Wizard [mp3]
05. Cazals – Somebody, Somewhere (Moulinex Remix) [mp3]
06. The Presets – This Boy’s In Love (Lifelike Remix) [mp3]
07. The Futureheads – Radio Heart (Dolby Anol Remix) [mp3]
08. Cut Copy – Nobody Lost, Nobody Found [mp3]
09. Scott Cooper & Andy George – Jump&Twist (Jokers Of The Scene Rmx) [mp3]
10. Tommy Sparks – I’m a Rope (Yuksek Remix) [mp3]
11. College – Teenage Color (Anoraak Remix) [mp3]
12. Friendly Fires – Paris (Aeroplane Remix) [mp3]
13. The Presets – Talk Like That (Jence Remix) [mp3]
14. Grum – Woah (Lapse Dub Remix) [mp3]
15. Underworld – Ring Road (Fake Blood Remix) [mp3]
16. The Bloody Beetroots – Verrà La Morte E Avrà i Tuoi Occhi [mp3]
17. Adrian Lux – Strawberry (Blende Remix) [mp3]
18. Darmstadt – Out Of The Blue (D.I.M. Remix) [mp3]
19. Surkin – Chrome Knight (Feat. Chromeo) [mp3]
20. PNAU – Embrace ft. Ladyhawke (Fred Falke & Miami Horror Remix) [mp3]
21. Headman – Running Into Time (AutoKratz Remix) [mp3]
22. Late Of The Pier – The Bears Are Coming (HAUNTS Remix) [mp3]
23. Mystery Jets – Half In Love (Foamo Remix) [mp3]
24. Muscles – The Lake (Azzido Da Bass Remix) [mp3]
25. Thunderheist – Jerk It (Jokers Of The Scene Remix) [mp3]

Well, hello there, and Merry Christmas!

What with it being the Premium Gifting Period (and indeed, the first Christmas on Clockwork Shorts), I’ve put something special together to share with you – a selection of five mixes for you to download and enjoy.

If I were a younger man, I’d urge you to have these on your iPod ready for a party of some description, but being pragmatic about it, allow me to make some better suggestions:

In Part 1 is some fun bouncy funk and hip hop beats – this could be ideal to get you chugging round your home whilst putting up the decorations. Part 2 has a selection of strangely familiar housey tracks that you can sing along to as you weave your way through the high street stores; moving on to Part 3, you will find some more uptempo tunes – just the thing to keep you distracted on the long motorway drive back to see your family! Xmas Mix Part 4 has got a bit of Dubstep in it – clearly the sort of relentlessly cheery music that’s perfect to open your pressies to, and finally in Part 5 is a woozy selection of Cosmic Disco – something nice to wind down to as you’re digesting turkey and recovering from THAT Doctor Who cliffhanger…

So – hopefully there’s a bit of something for everyone, and possibly even a bit of everything for someone.

Which brings me to the tricksy bit – for the few of you who are hardy or foolish enough to listen to all five of these mixes in sequence, you will discover they slot together (almost) seamlessly, like a giant musical Voltron – combining to form a 7 hour long Epic Mix. *phew*

If even the smallest iota of this selection is pleasing to your ears, the best way you can show your appreciation is to share these mixes with others. . . Burn someone a copy onto disc, drag and drop it on their desktop, blog it, whatever you like. Tell you what, in a “Pay it Forward”-chain-letter-kinda-stylee, I’ll guarantee you a lifetime’s supply of oxygen if you email any or all of these mixes to five other people. Now, what could be better than that? . .

Anyway, I’m sure you’ve only skim-read my verbose utterances, so allow me to conclude by wishing you the warmest of Season’s Greetings and a Fruitful and Joyous 2009.

And now, time for the music….

Part 1 – Funkybeetz, Hoppity hip, and Digi-hall

1. Lack of Afro – Touch my Soul
2. Romanowski – flagranti
3. Andy H – Kick Kick
4. Featurecast – Disco Diesel
5. A Skillz & Krafty Kuts – Aint it Funky (FKF remix)
6. Aldo Vanucci – Blue Grassed Devil
7. Qdup Foundation – Renegades Revenge
8. Dusty – Explosion
9. Funk Weapons – Story Time
10. Geriba – So High
11. TM Juke & the Jack Baker Trio – Heads High (er)
12. 50 Cent – A Little bit ( Modeselektor Fifty weapons remix)
13. Kraddy – Android Porn (Orangewarrior Wants you Back mash)
14. Snoop Dogg – Gangsta like Me
15. Q-Tip – Getting Up
16. J Live – The Upgrade (feat Posdonus & Oddisee)
17. Lyrics Born – I Changed My Mind
18. Sono Rhizmo – I’m your sexmachine
19. Resense 006 side b
20. Nightmares on Wax – Da Feelin
21. Sono Rhizmo – Barbwire
22. Fort Knox Five v Ursula 1000 – Under Mi sensi
23. Toddla T – Fill up mi portion
24. Toddla T – Backchatter
25. Little Boots – Meddle (Toddla remix)
26. Amy Winehouse – Valerie (baby j remix)
27. Ed Solo & Skool of Thought – We Play the Music
28. Kid Sister & David Banner – Family Reunion

(1hr 35mins)

Download link

Direct mp3 download. (right click on your mouse, Save As)

Part 2 – Mellow house & Techy-elekky bithniz

29. LCD Soundsystem – Losing My Edge
30. Architecture in Helsinki – That Beep (radioclit remix)
31. The Knife – Heartbeats (rex the dog remix)
32. Neon Neon – Racquel
33. DJ Mujava – Township Funk
34. Theme from BBC’s “The Apprentice” – Waiting Games
35. Black Ghosts – Something New
36. James Pants – Ka$h (A Trak remix)
37. Daedalus – Make it So (xxxchange remix)
38. Pase Rock – Get Money Kids
39. The Juan Maclean – Happy House
40. Will Saul & Tam Cooper – Sequential Circuits (Gui Boratto remix)
41. Claude von Stroke – Chimps
42. Jokers of the Scene – Baggy Bottom Boys
43. Sia – The Girl You Lost to Cocaine (Sander Van Doorn remix)
44. Watch With Teacher School TV interlude music- Raymond Guiot Ensemble – Flute & Flute
45. Simian Mobile Disco – clock
46. Dilemn – Cosmica (Tom Deluxx remix)

Part 2 is 1hr 18mins duration.

Download link

Direct mp3 download. (right click on your mouse, Save As)

Part 3 – Ravey house

47. ZZT – The Worm
48. 2 Bit Thugs – Rock Blockin Beats
49. Alex Gopher – Aurora
50. DJ Ayres – Give it up or turn it loose
51. Fake Blood – Mars
52. Little Boots- Stuck on Repeat (Fake remix)
53. The Kills – Cheap & Cheerful (fake blood)
54. Diplo – Blow Your Head (dj Eli remix)
55. Rod Lee – Let me see what your working with
56. Empire of the Sun – Walking on a Dream
57. Crookers & boy 8 Bit – The Crow
58. Proxy – Raven
59. Proxy – Destroy
60. Basement Jaxx – Twerk
61. Bobby Brown – My Prerogative (Breakdown remix)
62. Boy 8 Bit – Bulbs Burn Out
63. MGMT – Kids (Soulwax remix)
64. The Ting Tings – Great DJ (Calvin Harris mix)
65. Harvard Bass – Caked
66. Rejected – Lets go Juno (Harvard bass remix)
67. MSTRKRFT – Vuvuvu
68. Rampage – Reactivate
69. Rob Threezy – You Bad
70. Bird Peterson – Shooked
71. Sinden – Balla Shava
72. DJ Manaia – Fatty Girl
73. Claire Hux – Holy Ghost in the Club (bird peterson remix)
74. Pop Levi – Dita Dimone (mumdance & high rankin remix)
75. Sub Focus – X Ray (tittsworth remix)
76. Buraka son sistema – Inna de Ghetto

Part 3 is 1hr 41mins duration.
139 Mb.

Download link

Direct mp3 download. (right click on your mouse, Save As)

Part 4 – Dubstep & Drum & Bass

77. Buraka son Sistema & Skream – Blipstream
78. Dave Gahan – Saw Something (skreamix)
79. Black Ghosts – Some Way Through This
80. Sia – Where i belong (various production)
81. Kid Sister – Pro Nails (Rusko remix)
82. TC – Wheres My Money (Caspa remix)
83. Benga – 26 Basslines
84. Benga – go Tell them
85. Benny Page – Step Out
86. V. Snares – Koonut – Kaliffee
87. Chase & Status – Music Club
88. Noisia – Stigma
89. Noisia – Strange owl Experiment
90. LAOS – 1990s
91. Fort Knox Five – Bam and Bass (thunderball remix)
92. Me & You – Last Night
93. Benny Page – Turn Down the Lights
94. Fine Cut Bodies – Beaver Blink – Ooah remix

Part 4 is 55mins in duration.

Download link

Direct mp3 download. (right click on your mouse, Save As)

Part 5 – Cosmic Disco

95. MGMT – Electric Feel (Aeroplane Mix)
96. Too Hard – Coyote (Aeroplane remix)
97. Grace Jones – Williams blood remix
98. Thomas Dolby – Dissidents: The Search for the Truth
99. Woolfy v Projections – Neve
100. Rubber Room – Cockroach
101. Aeroplane – Caramellas
102. Born Ruffians – Red Yellow and Blue (White Williams remix)
103. Mark e & Dragon – Good Times (Prins Thomas miks)
104. Suzy Q – Get on Up and Do It Again
105. Windsurf – Windsurf
106. David Rubato – Circuit
107. Cosmorama – Discodromo (Prins Thomas mix)
108. LCD Soundsystem – Us V Them (Any colour u like remix)
109. Hell interface – Midus Touch

Part 5 is 1hr 26mins in duration.
119Mb

Download link

Direct mp3 download. (right click on your mouse, Save As)

So there you have it – a Seven Hour mix from yours truly as a special Xmas soundtrack to whatever you get up to this holiday season. Merry Christmas and I’ll see you in 2009.

(Of course, if your ears are still unsatisfied, you can always click HERE or HERE to explore the full archive of my mixological exploits – updated with something new every few weeks as the whim takes me.)

Ps: Steampunk robo-insects “borrowed” from the excellent work of Christopher Conte.. http://www.microbotic.org/portfolio.htm

Tigerbass! Let’s celebrate the release of Kid606’s new EP Die Soundboy Die tonight! I already heard it and can just tell you it’s wickid! And Dolby Anol playing live! Enough exclamation marks for now. It’s just a really good line up.

JACKSON AND HIS COMPUTER BAND (warp/berlin)
KID606 (tigerbeat6/ipecac/berlin)
DOLBY ANOL (backyard/tigerbass/uk)
WHITE WILLIAMS (domino/nyc)
SLY 1 (birthday party/berlin)

mp3: kid606 – gratuitiousbmorebirthdayjam YSI
mp3: n.w.a. – straight outta compton (kid606 remix) YSI
mp3: dolby anol – dolby & gabbana (cuz we are dolby anol) YSI
mp3: farley jackmaster funk – love can’t turn around (dolby anol remix) YSI
mp3: kings of leon (dolby anol remix) YSI
mp3: white williams – violator (jack beats remix) YSI
—————————————————————————————————-
KID606 MYSPACE
N.W.A. MYSPACE
DOLBY ANOL MYSPACE
WHITE WILLIAMS MYSPACE
JACK BEATS MYSPACE
KINGS OF LEON MYSPACE
FARLEY JACKMASTER FUNK MYSPACE

A few of my friends started a themed mixtape series a while back that I’ve contributed to a few times. Twice a month on (you guessed it) the first and fifteenth, musically inclined guests post up their favorite track selections.

I was scrambling for a theme this turn when I started reflecting back on all the great live music I’ve seen throughout the year. I decided to pull favorite songs from my most memorable nights out around the city. Though I had to leave off some greats, including Sharon Jones & Morrissey, there’s still a slew of noteworthy acts on there, including White Williams, Blond Acid Cult and FM Belfast.  Check it out here and keep going back for the latest compilations.

And here’s a link back to my worldly music mix from this past Spring.

Not since Iron & Wine came to town has Headliner’s been as packed as it was for Vampire Weekend’s first performance in Louisville.  The crowd was considerably younger as you would expect; filled with teenage girls hoping to make eye contact with the guys from New York.

Unless you have been living under a rock, you know that Vampire Weekend has taken the world by storm, gracing the cover of every music mag, playing every late show, having their songs played in commercials and in TV shows and selling out show after show.  I must admit, their sound is completely addicting and their debut album, released in January, is excellent (and sure to top Best Of 2008 lists come December).  You can read my “Addicted to Vampire Weekend” post here.  They played for a lucky few at the Old Tar Distillery in Lexington last November, and my how far they have come in less than a year.

An excellent group, White Williams from New York (headed by Joe Williams, opened and, I’m sure, picked up a bunch of new fans.  I listened to their album Smoke, released last November, and liked it, but wasn’t blown away.  After watching their live performance, I realized that they are one of those bands that must be seen live before you can really enjoy simply listening to their disc in you car.  The same is true for the people they have toured with in the past; people like Dan Deacon, Greg Gillis aka Girl Talk and Battles.  I couldn’t help but draw comparisons to a young James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem.    WW opened with their ever popular song,”New Violence,” and had my full attention from there.  Our friend Aaron Frank over at Critical Acclaim has a great interview with Joe, Matt and Cale here.

After a long break between sets, Vampire Weekend took the stage at 9:52.  I wrote down the exact time they went on because I was curious how long their performance could go with only a handful of songs.  The result: 46 minutes.  They played every song off their only album, a B-Side (“Ladies of Cambridge”), and a new one (“White Sky”).

The crowd at Headliner’s is always interesting.  On top of the young girls, there is always a crowd at Headliner’s that seem to just go because they like Headliner’s and have no clue who is playing.  You could tell who these people were because they were requesting Tim McGraw covers (I am not joking).  There were also some pleas for a new album, even though the just released this one in January.  I guess I can’t fault people for wanting more VW though.  The only boos from the audience came when frontman, Ezra Koenig, mentioned playing in Lexington before.  Clearly, some were still holding on to UofL’s beating a few weeks ago.

Four songs in, there was some technical difficulties with a speaker that was cracking pretty bad.  Roadies and the tech guys worked in the background through two songs before the cracking stopped.  The show was not affected, but keyboardist, Rostam Batmanglij, seemed upset (I think it may have been his monitor).

I left the show pleased and uplifted, as did most of the people in attendance.  As we hiked to our cars parked in what felt like an old salvage yard, it was easy to see just how far from Cape Cod we were.  But with our new appreciation of how hard they have it up there, who couldn’t help but smile.

Vampire Weekend- Wolcott (Finale)

Bonus Treat: Vampire Weekend - Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa (Teenagers edit)

More pics and set list below the break…

SET LIST

1. Mansard Roof
2. Campus
3. Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa
4. M79
5. It All Comes at Once (new)
6. Bryn
7. Ladies of Cambridge
8. A-Punk
9. One (Blake’s Got a New Face)
10. I Stand Corrected
11. The Kids Don’t Stand a Chance
12. Oxford Comma

ENCORE

1. Wolcott

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White Williams

posted by Rob at 6:11 pm local time, via mobile (lexington, usa)

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Das letzte Mal, dass Electro und Pop so vollkommen eins waren wie auf White Williams’ Debüt-Album „Smoke“ war wahrscheinlich auf der Junior Boys „So This Is Goodbye“. Aber beide zu vergleichen, führte mehr als einfach in die Irre.

Statt die Achtziger elektronisch-poppig neu zu denken, widmet Joe Williams sich ganz seiner Vorliebe für die Siebziger. Vorbilder, Vorlieben und Verweise greift er sich, zitiert sie, editiert, mixt und mischt sie in bester Mash-Up-Tradition zusammen. Jeden Track dominiert ein klarer roter Faden, der jedoch nicht immer so offenbar ist, wie im eindeutig T. Rex bzw. Marc Bolan nacheifernden „In The Club“.

Die Beats sind es dann, die dieses Album – wie auch die Junior Boys – tatsächlich im Hier und Jetzt verorten. Beats und Verzierungen, die, an der elektronischen Mash-Up- und Indietronics-Kultur geschult, nie aufdringlich und nur selten vordergründig daher kommen. Allein im Titelsong tragen sie wirklich den Track, und nur in „The Shadow“ fordern sie die Aufmerksamkeit für sich, spielen sie doch hier eine schmückende Rolle und schieben den Track ins Spannungsfeld aus psychedelischer Frühelektronika und ebensolchem Spätsechziger Jahre Britpop.

„Smoke“ drängt sich als Album nicht auf, schreit seine Qualitäten nicht heraus, sondern baut darauf, der Hörer werde sich ihm schon ausreichend widmen. Dieses Understatement erscheint dennoch hochgradig selbstbewusst. Vor allem jedoch macht das Album so weit verdammt viel Spaß. Es gefällt nicht nur nebenbei konsumiert, sondern steigert sich mit jedem Moment der Beschäftigung. Besonders das rausschmeißende „Route To Palm“ bildet nicht nur den wahrscheinlich stärksten Albumabschluss, den das Jahr 2008 bisher gesehen hat, nein, es reiht sich zudem mutig in die Reihe zum Casting des Songs des Jahres ein. Perfekt arrangiert, wunderhübsch in jedem Sinne des Wortes und voller Suchtpotential führt es aus dem White-Williams-Debüt hinaus und erinnert uns, ja nicht zu vergesslich zu sein.

Mit einem halben Jahr Verspätung kommt also auch Europa in den Genuss von „Smoke“. Seine Rezeption verhält sich dabei zu der des letzten Hot-Chip-Albums, wie Tiefschlaf zu einer ekstatischen Aufstiegsparty, doch spielen beide bei aller Unterschiedlichkeit definitiv in einer Klasse.

5 Quotes you wont see on Palms Out Sounds

1, “He is one of those people who would be enormously improved by death.” – Saki

2, “A friend is someone who’s there when he needs you” – Anon

3, “Trees cause more pollution than automobiles do.”  – Ronald Reagan

4, “Don’t pee in my pool and I won’t swim in your toliet!” – Anon

5, “I’ve been up and down so many times that I feel as if I’m in a revolving door.” – Cher

White Williams – Violator (Jack Beats Remix)

Rico Tubbs – I Like It Raw

The ground’s been covered by others already, and I’ve fallen into the bad habit of writing way too much about everything, so I’m going to do one sentence reviews of all the bands from the Future Days festival, which was a good night in general.

High Places - Their one good song was good, if just as muddy as everything else.
White Williams – Shite Williams
Deerhunter – I wanted to like them, but they did not grab me.
Dan Deacon – The best holiday entertainer ever, and my vote for world-wide funmaker.
Jape – Tried bit hard at the start, before busting out the perennially great Floating and sliding easily and brilliantly to the finishing line.

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Here’s the playlist for last night, Friday 6th June. I present a show every Friday at Midnight BST on Phantom 105.2 in Dublin and www.phantom.ie. The ‘Under The Radar’ album was:

SUPER FURRY ANIMALS – MWNG

PLAYLIST:

THE WEEK THAT WAS – Scratch The Surface  [SEE VIDEO BELOW]

BECK – Chemtrails
FLEET FOXES – Mykonos
SPORTSDAY MEGAPHONE – LA
SYMARIP – Skinhead Moonstomp
ELF POWER – Softly Through The Void
TRICKY – Council Estate
THE DUDLEY CORPORATION – The Lens Begins
SIGUR ROS – Gobbledigook
GEMMA RAY – Dry River
SUPER FURRY ANIMALS – Ymaelodi A’r Ymylon
UGLY MEGAN – What’s My Name?
LAUREL COLLECTIVE – Billion Planets
FLYING LOTUS – Comet Course
LIQUID LIQUID – Cavern
WHITE WILLIAMS – Violator  [SEE VIDEO BELOW]

PORT O’ BRIEN – I woke up today
SUPER FURRY ANIMALS – Ysbeidiau Heulog
LEILA – Deflect
TOMORROW – My White Bicycle
JOHNNY FOREIGNER – Cranes and Cranes and Cranes and Cranes
JOHN MATTHIAS – Blind Lead The Blind
AUTUMN OWLS – Pavor Nocturnus
THE NAZZ – Open My Eyes
SUPER FURRY ANIMALS – Pan Ddaw’r Wawr
BLACK AFFAIR – It’s Real
THE DODO’S – Red & Purple
WOLF PARADE – Bang Your Drum
JAPE – Graveyard  [SEE VIDEO BELOW]

DAEDELUS – I Car(ry) Us

Me gusta como suena la música de White Williams,
su álbum Smoke (domino records) me parece muy
recomendable, Violator y New Violence son los dos
primeros singles extraidos de el.

Our old buddy, White, went all the way back to his New Violence EP for his latest video.  We were infatuated with the 90s action video for “New Violence” and this one takes a decidedly different approach (i.e. he actually appears in the thing).  Enjoy.

White Williams – Violator

White Williams – The Shadow

Crystal Castles – Vanished

I am proud to announce the following acts will be performing with us on select dates.

Deerhunter
Crystal Castles
Does It Offend You, Yeah?
A Place To Bury Strangers
White Williams

Check the performance page to see who plays what date.

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posted by Trent Reznor at 2:04 pm pst, from los angeles

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