I've lived in a lot of places and all of them have had watering holes. In Connecticut, it was the sound. North Carolina, the creek. New Jersey, the lake. Upstate NY, the rope swing river. Louisiana, the gulf. Wyoming, the Snake River. Yet, despite being an island, NYC just doesn't have any swimming hole worthy waterways.
With the thermometer hitting upwards of 85 in Greenpoint the past two weekends, it's safe to say that Summer is almost here. It's also safe to say that you can find me in the park, chilling with friends, soaking up sun and drinking Margarita's in styrofoam cups from the Turkey's Nest. My advice with this mix; burn a copy to CD, then transfer that CD to Maxell XL-II, pop it into your Radio Raheem-esque boom box, pick up a blanket and go lay out in your neighborhood park. Bring booze. Smokes. Buy an ice cream. (or Italian ice.) Stop being so pale.
Bradford Cox just dropped another virtual 7" over on the Deerhunter/Atlas Sound/Lotus Plaza blog. The new Atlas Sound digi-release, which pairs "Springtime Instrumental b/w Time Warp", is sort of an early '60s throwback, complete with kaleidoscopic riffs, shakers of all sorts and nostalgic, pre-pubescent drum fills. "Time Warp" is sort of an anti-suburbia sketch, which, while being slightly negative, comes across in an "I feel your pain" kinda way, ala the film Suburbia, which sucks, but I sort of really like/relate to. All in all, a nice little Earth Day surprise, on top of that new Deerhunter jam "Rainwater Cassette Exchange", which the band let loose last week. Does this mean were getting the follow up to Microcastle and Let The Blind... sooner than expected? One can only hope.
Grab the Coricidin, fire up some candles and turn the lights down low for a splendid trip to the woozy synth'd out ether world. Yep, Bradford Cox has done it again. New virtual 7" over at the Deerhunter blog. "Airedales" is pretty much all I ever want my dreams to sound like. Deerhunter November 7th??? Anyone? Bueller?
One might not think South Street Seaport's outdoor Mall food court vibe would be the best place to see an Atlas Sound show. Truth is Bradford Cox's loopy lo-fi psych-pop is probably better suited for a black light lite basement, or on headphones in your bedroom high on Nyquil. However, somehow, Bradford was able to translate the warmth of Let The Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel for a crowd of screwed up kids, post-work partiers, middle aged couples, khaki clad tourists, and, yep, a few hipsters. Maybe it was my spot in the crowd (upfront left), but the sound was impeccable, way better than at the No Age show. Bradford played a truly hypnotic, euphoric set of Let The Blind... gems like "Quarantined," "Cold As Ice," as well as new cut "Logos," which Bradford said would be the last song on his next album. Be sure to check out the video of "Logos."
Bored on a stormy night in Brooklyn, watching the sky light up and waiting to hear the new Grizzly Bear song on Letterman (which was sweeeet). Yep, that about sums it up. Here's the soundtrack to the evening.
With the solstice behind us, we figured its as good a time as any to share a brand new, fresh for Summer Bobkast with you. A potent and delectable mix of sugary pop, acid disco, African pop-hop and Michael Jackson, the latest Bobkast is fun for all ages, shapes and sizes. Enjoy.
It's been nearly two months since we posted anything by Deerhunter frontman/Atlas Sound craftsman Bradford Cox, which is the equivalent to five years for most artists. If you've been playing along, every so often Bradford releases a MicroMix or a Digital 7" or a homemade EP or whatever the fuck release he wants to put out via the Deerhunter/Atlas Sound/ Lotus Plaza blog. It happens quite often but regardless of Bradford's insane output, my heart always begins to flutter at the site of a new post on the Deerhunter blog (Yes, my life has reached that pathetic point where I get very excited about obscure blog only releases). Cox's new Amsterdam Midi digital 7" is another fine example of what one man can do in a hotel room with a laptop and midi controller. I'd like to think my stone-made compositions were this hypnotic, but they definitely don't compare with the looping transcendence Cox composed in an Amsterdam hotel. As always, highly rec'd.
As usual, lots of activity on the deerhunter/atlas sound/lotus plaza blog, but this time it's not just Bradford posting some sweet, gauzy bedroom jams. This time, it's big news...or a month late April fools joke. So, without further adieu, Deerhunter would like to announce their new guitarist. Her name is Whitney and she rocks a pretty sweet looking mother of pearl Jaguar. As for the details, here's what Bradford had to say "I've known Whitney since she was a cheerleader with a bad attitude at Marietta High School." That's it. Bradford had Whitney introduce herself with a micromix, which I'm pretty excited about, as it contains two of my all time favorite songs, off two of my favorite albums, from two of my favorite artists. The songs in question, Bob Dylan's "Isis" from Desire and Springsteen's "Atlantic City" from the masterful Nebraska. If this mix is any indicator, Whitney's got pretty good taste in the classics, with the Stones ("Moonlight Mile"), The Faces ("Oh La La"), Bowie ("Aladdin Sane"), and Patti Smith ("Rock and Roll Nigger") each making an appearance. Looking forward to seeing what this chicks got up her sleeve. Godspeed Whitney.
In what should come as a no surprise, Bradford Cox has released another set of tunes via the Deerhunter/Atlas Sound/Lotus Plaza blog. Posted at 4:51 am, "Bored Dub" and "No Longer" are ethereal wonders perfectly suited for watching the sun rise. I can personally vouch for that. Bradford, graveyard shift workers of the east coast thank you for the treat. Keep 'em coming.
It seems like every other day Bradford Cox releases a new tune via the Deerhunter/Atlas Sound/ Lotus Plaza blog. Not that we have a problem with that, in fact, we like it so much we've subscribed to the blog via RSS, which is a great way to keep up with the outpouring of music Bradford has unleashed in the past months. Last night he posted the following.After the Deerhunter show at the Market Hotel Friday, I became extremely ill. Lockett and I had both been suffering from a severe flu, but I think exhaustion and too much cigarette smoke pushed me beyond my limits and by Sunday, the 13th I had to go to the emergency room in Manhattan. I honestly felt like I was dying and there is no better time to explore and relive small tears in your past than to have them floating in front of you in a haze of painkillers and i.v. bags."April 13th" is a loopy bit of Animal Collective-like happy schizo pop. Warm and inviting, weird and charming all at the same time. According to Bradford "this should give you an idea of what to expect of a solo A.S. performance" (he had been performing with a band, see here, here). "April 13th" is a doozy; nearly twelve minutes of floating melody hung in a perpetual purgatory like state, cuddled with pharmaceutically entranced vocals and all the subtle nuances of sound you'd expect from a Deerhunter or Atlas Sound song. It's reminiscent of "Youth Energy" in form and length, but more focused than the instrumental from the How I Escaped The Prison of Fractals EP. The bells and dreamy, aesthetic optimism also bring Let The Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel standouts "Quarantined" and "On Guard." It's a behemoth of love soaked in high grade opiates, bells and synths, looped over and over for your aural pleasure. "Right On Right On" (or is it "Ride On, Ride On").
Stereogum dropped a bomb today with the third incarnation of their covers project. We were big fans of the Drive: Automatic for the People(especially covers by Bodies of Water and Shout Out Louds), and, of course, the fantastic OKX: Tribute to OK Computer. This time they've tackled Bjork's Post, the Icelandic princesses second solo record and some say her best. Personally, my favorite is Homogenic, but who cares.
