pics: Northside Fest Night 1

"Nobody Needs Oppression"
Cameo Gallery

Julianna Barwick at Cameo Gallery

Brightblack Morning Light at Studio B

Ducktails at Cameo Gallery

Ducktails at Cameo Gallery

Brightblack Morning Light at Studio B

tonight: Ducktails & Julianna Barwick

"You Can Find Me At The Mall"
(photo by thepiratehat)
The first show I plan on catching at the inaugural Northside Festival might be the show I'm most excited for; Ducktails and Julianna Barwick at Cameo. Both artists, who I've written about in the past, create ethereal post-gaze soundscapes capable of transporting one to an island, a cloud or some near-purgatorial state where angels feed you grapes from the vine. While Ducktails is often noted for his beach-y atmospherics, I find that his loopy ambience is equally as fitting for a misty, cloudy night like tonight. Ducktails is back in the US after a lengthy European tour, and the release of his Not Not Fun self-titled debut LP, which, if you haven't heard already, is ideal for curing summer hangovers and will come in handy really soon when the garbage starts to stank. Think of it as the poor man's air conditioning.

After Ducktails, Ms. Julianna Barwick, who began singing in her father's church in Oklahoma, will take the stage for a set of tunes, which will hopefully cull from the phenomenal Sanguine and the recently released Florine, which will be out soon in physical form (pre-order here). The show is curated by Men & Women, who are playing after Barwick, but if I didn't know any better I'd say I had a hand in putting this one on, as the pairing is right up my alley. See ya at Cameo!

Ducktails- Live on WFMU
Julianna Barwick- Cloudbank

mp3: Dan Deacon at Primavera Sound

"I Got A Rattle Snake Gun"
Admittedly, I'm not a big Dan Deacon fan. Spiderman of the Rings had some choice schizo-freak-out jams but didn't seem to garner repeat listens. I saw Mr. Deacon once a few years back at the Judson Church on Mischief Night, part of a NY Mag scavenger hunt-slash-costume party-open bar, which, for better or worse, also included Chromeo (meh). That night was fun, but I sort-of figured I'd had my "Dan Deacon Experience." That said, Wham City's Mayor had his way with the late-night crowd at Primavera Sound. Not only did he clear the floor, start a "dance off" and provide constant dance-move instruction, but he also managed to conduct a fifteen person ensemble. The ensemble is tight, and I mean tight like a husky dude wearing girls jeans tight, and provided a much needed depth to Deacon's electronics work, which, on its own, just isn't as powerful as fifteen musicians banging away. Fortunately for those not in attendance, the fine folks at WFMU recorded the show and are now hosting it on their recently launched Free Music Archive. Snag it here.

preview: Bonnaroo

"There ain't no place I'd rather be"

In 2006, Rick Farman of Superfly Presents--the fine folks who put together Bonnaroo every year--told the New York Times that he had ambitions to turn the festival into "an iconic event...like Glastonbury or New Orleans Jazz Fest." It seems they're well on their way.

The Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival in Manchester, TN, now in its eighth incarnation, takes place June 11-14. Boasting well over 100 performers (many of which have been discussed here on Bobka) covering every genre imaginable, the fest will welcome 80,000 revelers from around the globe to an environment of controlled chaos. Aside from the diverse top-notch musical talent that will be playing throughout the weekend (two nights of Phish and The Boss are this year's headliners), Bonnaroo has also become known for its alternative activities that seem designed to ensure sensory overload, including a comedy tent, cinema tent, arcade, batting cages, and let's not forget the Silent Disco--the surreal club environment in which headphones, not a PA system, are responsible for pumping the music to your brain.

All of this takes place on a huge piece of farmland that is situated perfectly so that it is easily accessible yet still feels like the middle of nowhere. The fantasy-land atmosphere is furthered by the large-scale, visually arresting art installations which often encourage, nay require, audience participation.

And herein lies the secret to Rick Farman and Superfly's success: Bonnaroo is all about the fans. It was started by a group of music lovers and it shows. It is an event/experience rather than just another concert in a big field and it offers tremendous value for the customer.

The Chocolate Bobka team will be in the trenches next week reporting live from the festival ground. Be sure to keep an eye on our Twitter feed for updates throughout the weekend. In the meantime, check the official Bonnaroo site for more information.

A few of the bands playing Bonnaroo this weekend:

Delta Spirit
Passion Pit
Tobacco
Animal Collective
The Dirty Projectors
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Santigold
Grizzly Bear
Al Green
TV On the Radio
Lucinda Williams
Amadou & Mariam
David Byrne
Beastie Boys
Phish
Public Enemy
Girl Talk
The Hood Internet
Femi Kuti and the Positive Force
Phoenix
Cotton Jones
Justin Townes Earle
Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band
Elvis Perkins in Dearland
Allen Toussaint
Robyn Hitchcock & The Venus 3
Rodqigo y Gabriela
Bon Iver
Wilco
Of Montreal
Jenny Lewis
The Decemberists
BRUUUUUUUUUUUUCE
Nine Inch Nails
MGMT
Yeasayer
Elvis Costello
The Mars Volta
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
Erykah Badu
Andrew Bird
Jessica Lee Mayfield
Merle Haggard
Okkervil River
Snoop Dogg
Band of Horses
Neko Case

Aziz Ansari
Triumph the Insult Comic Dog
Jimmy Fallon
Todd Barry
Rob Riggle
Michael Showalter
Michael Ian Black
Janeane Garofalo

pics: Polaroids from Primavera Sound

"I'll Tell The World"
Chris + John from Girls during Spiritualized.

John from Girls + golden pom pom girl during "Walk With Jesus."

Vivian Girls on the Pitchfork Stage. "My Baby Wants Me Dead."
Drummer from Girls leaving Vivian Girls

Richard D. James, aka Aphex Twin, murdering the crowd post- MBV.

Dan Deacon clearing the floor late-night.

Dan Deacon Ensemble member, in red M&M costume(?), instructing the crowd.

mp3: Beach Fossils "Vacation", "Daydream"

"Leave The City Behind"
Waking up all foggy on a hazy morning with peanut butter on my breath, espresso penetrating my nasal passage, and Beach Fossils "Vacation" radiating through my ear drums felt like a moment of semi-cosmic clarity. My senses were a buzz, yet, despite the undeniable strength of Stumptown's Hairbender, I still felt like I was drifting through Maya Lin's Wave Field at Storm King, the landscape undulating like an ancient oscillating synthesizer– a rippled world. Beach Fossils, a dreamy bliss pop act from Brooklyn, whose associations with Woodsist, Captured Tracks and Underwater People's places him as part of the neo-Urban sylvan-beach psyche community (Woods, Ganglians, Real Estate, Ducktails), is the sound of escaping into a sun washed Polaroid from Rockaway Beach– the Atlantic to your east, Queens to the west. Beach Fossils have a number of upcoming shows in NYC, including one, appropriately, this Sunday at Fort Tilden in Rockaway Beach. That show, aka Todd P's annual Unamplified BBQ, also features Kurt Vile, Phosphorescent, Shilpa Ray, Real Estate (& Ducktails), Teengirl Fantasy, and, literally, like a hundred more bands. Oh yeah, and it's free. So yeah, you should probably get there if you can. If you can't make it Sunday, do your best to catch Beach Fossils with Real Estate and San Francisco's Girls at the Monster Island Basement on Friday June 26th, which is sure to be one for the ages.

Beach Fossils- Vacation
Beach Fossils- Daydream

live: Holiday Shores @ Spin; Tonight at Shea Stadium

"Put Your Toes In Now"
Playing in a large, cleared office with full length, open windows while posuer-artiste's mingle, drink Michelob Ultra and discuss some seriously hein-dog high school abstracts might not sound like an ideal place to play, but I guess no one told Holiday Shores. The Tallahassee band, whose been in town all week and has been receiving some nice press, played an incredibly effervescent set of refined bedroom jams better suited for backyard BBQ's, where playing washers and drinking really cold, really cheap beer is one's only pre-occupation. That said, the band made the best of their surroundings, aka the Spin Magazine office, by harnessing pure, unadulteratd fun and succesfully flipping any self-important NYC bullshit on its bum. In short, they were great, and their songs sound as good, possibly even better, live– and yes, they were playing with a minimalist drum set, were down a keyboard and some other magic gadgets. Holiday Shores finish their week in NYC tonight with a show at the new Shea Stadium. Originally, this was going to be Holiday Shores and a few others, but with rain putting a damper on Hillstock, the band will be joined by the likes of Michael Jordan, and the Screaming Females, amongst many other Hillstock acts, whose outdoor festival has been moved, you guessed it, indoors.

Holiday Shores will release Columbus'd the Whim on two syllable records on August 4th.

Holiday Shores-Phones Don't Feud (via Fader)

live: WAVVES at Primavera Sound

"I Won't Make It To 25"
(photos: craig loschmann)
By now you've probably heard a bevy of remarks about Wavves show on the Pitchfork Stage at Primavera Sound. As one who was at the show, up close, and was really enjoying myself, I was sort of shocked to hear about the supposed "meltdown", et all. I may have gotten to the stage right after the awkward sound check/ intro, so maybe I missed the bizarre tone that was set, but I actually thought that Nathan Williams put on the best show I've seen him play so far, which include an early day show at a bar on 110th St and a party in a smokey warehouse in Greenpoint. Photographer Craig Loschmann, who hadn't seen nor heard Wavves before, actually thought it was one of the funnest, best sets of the festival. Maybe we completely missed something, but isn't this exactly what a Wavves show is supposed to be like– drug fueled, failing, teetering on the edge of insanity, a breakdown, barely, if at all, holding it together, and sort of letting it all unravel over the course of, I don't know, say, twenty minutes. After all, it's what makes it a Wavves show. Skate dick punk snarl, too many drugs, a bandmate stuck in the "WTF?!", a crowd who, seemingly, was having equal fun cheering and jeering, and a prominent, often pretentious music magazine using their built-up hype to drive hits– sorta sounds like a weak version of some Rolling Stone exploited Guns N' Roses tour doc. Whatever it was, I think its safe to say that I now like Wavves about 100x more than I did before, which is rather significant considering I wasn't all too excited to hear/see him play after the Top Shop show at the Shank.

live: Bat for Lashes at Primavera Sound

"I Will Rise"
(photos: craig loschmann)
Like a cobra rising from an earn, Natashia Khan, aka Bat For Lashes, slivers around stage with a presence so captivating one may forget to blink. Fur and Gold was a truly wondrous record, creeping with neo-psychedelia and soul noir, like the soundtrack to a speakeasy murder mystery, best exemplified by "Trophy" and "What's A Girl To Do?", whose video is a beast in and of itself. But "Glass", the first single from Two Suns and the opener of her main stage set at Primavera, finds Khan channeling ancient Mysticism, which Wiki defines as, the "pursuit of communion with, identity with, or conscious awareness of an ultimate reality, divinity, spiritual truth, or God through direct experience, intuition, or insight." Basically, see her soon while she's still playing relatively small rooms. It won't be like that for long.

live: Justin Townes Earle

"Black-eyed Suzy she's still losing ground to the heat"

Justin Townes Earle took a break from his 6-month-long tour on Sunday to play a solo acoustic performance to an energetic crowd of about 50 at Drew's in Ringwood, NJ. After opening for his father the night before, JTE's set slowly morphed into a 90-minute storytellers performance covering everything from his water soaked apartment in Crown Heights to picking up chicks outside methadone clinics. He treated the audience to album standards, new songs, covers, and a few ditties he said he was scared to play until now. Justin's knack for storytelling was heightened by his charisma and overall likability. He'll be touring through August in support of his new album, Midnight at the Movies, including two sets at Bonnaroo next weekend.

Justin Townes Earle - Can't Hardly Wait [Replacements cover from 2009's Midnight at the Movies]

live: Girls at Primavera Sound

"I Don't Wanna Die"
(photos: craig loschmann)
Barcelona's Primavera Sound sort of played like a list of bands who have literally been in Brooklyn in the past month. For many acts, including Wavves, Vivian Girls, Pains of Being Pure at Heart, The Vaselines, Bat For Lashes, and Crystal Stilts, this couldn't have been truer, and as fellow Brooklynite and Vice photographer said to me, "we're really spoiled." Sure, it's NYC and all, but there are still acts that we don't get to see very often, and one band, Girls, made it well worth the trip across the pond. San Francisco's Girls played one of the earliest sets on the P4K stage, coming on right after Women, coincidence...I think not. Humble, visibly anxious, and noting that "This is just the beginning", the psych-revival/drug pop band blasted through a set of new material from their now complete, yes complete, debut full length, which will see the light of day by the end of the year via True Panther. While their biggest show ever, by far, was plagued with some technical difficulties (bad cables), they managed to set aside early problems and showcase mostly unheard new songs in front of the dense Mediterranean crowd. The highlight of their set was the first Girls song I ever heard, "Hellhole Ratrace", which will soon be released on seven inch b/w of "Solitude", a new song the band has yet to play live. With all this Girls output set for the rest of 2009, I think its safe to say that the rest of 2009 is going to be, ahum, "totally rad."

Interview: Crocodiles

"I Wanna Kill Tonight"
(photo by Abbey Braden)
Bobka will be on vacation for the next week or so, in order to head to, prepare for, and cover Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona, Spain. I mean, Aphex Twin is gonna be there. Anyway, while there may be a post here or there, in my absence, check out this interview I did with the Crocodile's for 'Sup Magazine.

new: Holiday Shores

"Days Drag"

A few weeks ago I noticed that two syllable records had a new act by the name of Holiday Shores on their lineup. Curious, and sort of thinking 'how did I not know this?', I realized that Holiday Shores press shot was a exactly the same as two syllable signee's Continental Divide's photo. After putting two and two together, and getting confirmation from the two syllable CEO's, I came to the conclusion that, yes, Holiday Shores are indeed Continental Divide.

The band, who produces the musical equivalent of the half-half ice tea lemonade I'm drinking and the perfectly ripe banana I'm eating, is currently putting the final touches on their two syllable debut, Columbus'd the Whim, which, depending on who you ask, comes out either July 26 or August 4th. Fans of Matt Mondanile's (Real Estate, Ducktails) loopy bedroom psyche and day-drinking, will rejoice upon hearing Holiday Shores debut, which ebbs and flo's much like a hazy afternoon drinking lukewarm beer in the sun; happy, lethargic, rejuvenated and wasted, it's all here, ready to be devoured. It's the sort of record that makes you want to quit your job, move to Alabama, start a pie shop and sit out back and smoke cigarettes all day, while downing Coors Original, the banquet beer. (What can I say, this band really makes me want to drink beer.) While I anxiously await their debut, those fiending a post-work malt beverage can sip on portions of Continental Divide's EP over at RCRD LBL.

Continental Divide- Golden Throat EP

mp3: Ganglians "The Void"

"Moon Shadow Running Through Your Head"

An eye catcher in the Woodsist store window, Ganglians self titled 12" plays like a product of its album art. Here's my fictional account of the happenings:

Recorded in the dankest, darkest outcove of a Southwestern desert abode, a secret splinter group of renegade shaman's induldge in some ayahuasca, grab a few broken instruments (remnants from former settlers, long since gone after the great cliff massacre of 2009) and take a stab at pop music. The ayahuasca rolls like a venomous twister, swaying thoughts between horrifying and magical, and generating enough electricity to bring cave-paintings to life. "The Void" is the aftermath; hazy and beat-up, introspective and drained, its psycho-active balladry encompasses a thousand trips, here and fro, and a longing for the next.

(removed)

7": Kria Brekkan "Wildering"

Pickup Sleepy
While AC and Grouper were both phenomenal last night, the highlight of my evening may have come before the show when I noticed that Animal Collective was selling Kria Brekkan's Wildering 7" alongside their own merch and a bunch of Grouper vinyl. (If you are heading to upcoming shows, be sure to snag the Pumice split, I can't believe it's still available.) For a long time now I have been under the impression that this limited run single was long out of print, so finding it for 5 bucks at a former shipping terminal in the absolute middle of nowhere Manhattan was quite a pleasant surprise. Like much of Kria's work, Wildering plays like a black lullaby from a decrepit, abandoned old barn, where a young orphan girl lives with a family of mice, subsiding only on bread, water and worms. The sound of the wind in the house is like her dead parent's voices and often comes clattering in from the cold shore, shaking windows and making the floor boards creak an unsavory creak. Often horrifying, the young orphan girl takes comfort in the company of her rodent friends, who bundle crumbs for her and make sure not to naw away at her only blanket.

Kria Brekkan- Wildering (via Raven Sings the Blues)

live: Animal Collective @ Terminal 5

"A Guy On The River Really Can't Make You Change"
(photo by rezflicks)
Like clockwork, Animal Collective continues to absolutely crush. That might seem a little dry and 'bro-y", but it's true. The show started with "Chocolate Girl," a choice opener to get the ball rolling, before getting down to business. They got "My Girls" out of the way early, subsequently working the crowd into an ecstatic fervor. As expected, it was jam packed and the kids were really getting down on MPP cuts, especially "Summertime Clothes," which I've heard 4 times live and it just keeps getting better. While the band didn't reach too far into the back catalog and the set was pretty much what I expected, having seen them on MPP release day in January, I was once again blown away by how tight Geologist, Avey and Panda have become on stage, and just how far their sound has truly come. It's almost at the point where we have to start guessing what they'll do next? My guess, back to their more acoustic roots, as it'd probably be the most unexpected thing. Then again, AC always have two feet firmly planted in the future, so maybe the next record will be recorded in Space? or 20,000 leagues under the sea?

Setlist
Chocolate Girl
My Girls
Also Frightened
Summertime Clothes
Slippi
Why Would I Want The Sky (new)
Guys Eyes
Comfy In Nautica->
Essplode->
Fireworks->
Leaf House

Encore
Bleed
Lion In A Coma
Brothersport

Animal Collective- Why Would I Want The Sky (Live on BBC's Rob Da Bank sessions)

mp3: Pocahaunted "Dusk"

Travel Down Peyote Road

I hate throwing the term drone around because it tends to turn a lot of people off, but I've noticed there is something about Pocahaunted which enthralls even people completely opposed to avant-noise, etc. I've been following the cavernous Angelino's for a while now, snagging their Gold Miner's Daughter tape, as well as the phenomenal Chains LP, but Passage is really where its at. Maybe that's because it is the first time on record (I think) that the Pocahaunted sisters have recorded with Sun Araw axe-mastermind Cameron Stallone and LA weirdo scene maker Bobb Bruno, whose appeared on other Pocahaunted recordings, as well as records by Abe Vigoda, Mika Miko, Silver Dagger and countless other "Smell" acts. While Chains is truly a force to be reckon with, the strength of the Passage lies in its subtlety. It creeps up from behind you, shrouding the room (or the park or wherever the hell you are) in an incredibly dense haze of melodic smog. Breathing in too much of this smog will surely choke one to death, however, if prepared (with swine-flu doctor's mask and a good pair of goggles) one can see the light beeming through the smokey fog, making the Passage the perfect modern representation of Plato's Allegory of the Cave.

Pocahaunted- Dusk

mp3: So Cow "Shackleton"

"I Made A Rough Mix"
(photo by maeversification)
Encompassing all your fed-up suburban emotions and the dilemma's of young life in three minutes and thirty eight seconds, So Cow's "Shackleton" is the 2k9 equivalent of a real-time, stream of consciousness lyric poem, made famous by fellow Irishman James Joyce. While Dubliners seems to have influenced So Cow's (aka Brian Kelly) writing style, it is hard to deny Stephen Malkmus's influence on Kelly, who delivers "tragic irony and neon punchlines too" like Woody Allen's pre-occupied court jester in Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex *But We're Afraid to Ask, every little word spilling from his mouth, a mere spout for emotional hangups to pour from. While the pouring is important, its Kelly's knack for cleaning up the spillage in a few comforting words ("And one day I'll write the song you require, until then La La La") , that really makes one question the concept of paying hundreds of dollars on therapy sessions, when one could simply purchase a $15 LP from Tic Tac Totally and get the same results.

So Cow has one last show in New York, this coming Friday at Cake Shop.

So Cow- Shackleton (via Soundbites)

new: White Antelope "Silver Dagger"

"I Can Be Your Bride"
As if you needed another reason, this is why Twitter is great. Robin Pecknold tweets "Silver Dagger / Wild Mountain Thyme http://is.gd/inf2" and we get two new songs from the Fleet Foxes/White Antelope. "Silver Dagger" is a fine example of Pecknold channeling Dylan the storyteller, the Blood on the Tracks/Desire-era Dylan, where stories were the center of the song, rather than just a mere aspect of them. Pecknold really hits this one on the money. The other new treat is "Wild Mountain Thyme", which is basically a Jackson Browne-CSNY-Laurel Canyon dream come true. Hit the MySpace asap.

White Antelope- Silver Dagger & Wild Mountain Thyme

mix: Sleep

"When You Sleep"

A little over a year ago, as per request by a few readers, I published a second sleep mix. In retrospect, the mix isn't as much as ambient, as it is ethereal, although it does contain incredibly still moments of crystalline wonder. The goal with this mix was to provide a foray into dreams, a sort of Alice in Wonderland/The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe/Coraline portal into a sea of dreams, beginning with Vera November's transcendent cover of Arthur Russell's "Our Last Night Together" and ending in a wash of sea sounds and lilting forest voices, care of White Rainbow's "Awakening." While I don't consider this to be an incredibly well mixed mix, after recently rediscovering it, I truly felt like it accomplished its goal of leading the listener from the drowsy conscious world into the luminous world of dreams.

Sleep Mix
1.Vera November- Our Last Night Together (Arthur Russell Cover)
2. Stars of the Lid- Even if You're Never Awake (Deuxieme)
3. Deerhunter- Red Ink
4. Grizzly Bear- Granny Dinner
5. Japancakes- What You Want (My Bloody Valentine Cover)
6. Taylor Deupree- Untitled 1231
7. Tangerine Dream- Sequent c'
8. Efterklang- Illuminant
9. Johan Johannson- Bao
10. Jonny Greenwood- Prospectors Arrive
11. Klimex- The Ice Storm
12. White Rainbow- Awakening

Sleep Mix

video: Woods @ Market Hotel

"Don't Repeat It, Don't Ask Why"
(photo by YiiioiiiY P)
This is what I was talking about a few months ago (two days after this was recorded), when I said Woods "did some interstellar exploration, reaching for the most far out galaxies, yet managing to ground their sound in songs, which, after getting lost in space, kept calling me back to earth." The verdict, Woods is super-fucking natural.

"The Hold"


"Twisted Tongue"

bootleg: Mogwai @ MHoW 4/29/09

"Mogwai Fear Satan"
(photo by georgia.kral)
Last Wednesday I hit up the final show of Mogwai's sold-out three night run at Music Hall of Williamsburg. While I was prepared for a full on sonic explosion, I was absolutely dumbfounded by how devastating the Scottish post-rock acts live show was. A full on sensory experience, I left having to completely regroup, as if I'd been skiing Tuckerman's Ravine, hit a boulder, fell 300 yards and had to climb back up to reclaim my gear. I literally felt like I lost my shit. Luckily, NYC Taper was there to capture Mogwai in all its glory. And if that wasn't enough, for fans truly looking to experience the set again, the band was filming the show for a future DVD release.

NYC Taper Mogwai 4/29/09

video: Titus Andronicus "Upon Viewing..."

"... Brueghel's 'Landscape With the Fall of Icarus'" True to form, this new Titus Andronicus video is fucking awesome. Was just over a year ago I got The Airing of Grievances on Troubleman Unlimited and proceeded to head bash my way through three weeks of an allergic coma in New Jersey. Couldn't have done it without them.

live: Kurt Vile tomorrow @ Silent Barn

"Bigger Than A Humpback Whale"
(photo by c89)
By now there shouldn't be much need to talk up Kurt Vile from Philly, but I'll do it anyway, as he's back in Brooklyn this weekend for another show with Gary War at the Silent Barn. (Ok, technically it's Queens, but whatever.) At this point its obvious to anyone paying attention that Vile's got some Ryan Adams strength prolific-ness in his blood, as if songs ooze out of him, all sludgy and hypnotic, in some preternatural way. Considering all the mediocre, highly conceptual indie rock and breakneck fuzz, it's scary that Vile is able to consistently deliver such seemingly carefree records, blending the American bar folk of Tom Petty with the mesmerizing noize of Sonic Youth and Dinosaur Jr. While God Is Saying This To You and Constant Hitmaker have been garnering most of the buzz, his Kurt Vile & the Violator's release, The Hunchback EP, is as good, if not better than his folk leanings, proving that Vile really knows how to let loose. If Constant Hitmaker is the sound of a Sunday drive through a canyon, then The Hunchback is that same drive on PCP while being chased by amphetamine fueled Hells Angels and Cops looking to bust some heads; paranoid, intoxicating full-throttle stoner rock of the finest sort. Only question is when will Vile roundup the Violator's and take them on the road.

Kurt Vile & the Violators- The Hunchback

new: Julianna Barwick Florine EP

"Cloudbank"
Brooklyn based avant-chanteuse Julianna Barwick, whose Sanguine LP and Daytrotter session are consistently on heavy rotation in my bedroom, just released a new EP available on eMusic. Entitled Florine, the 24 minute mini-album is a continuation of the breathy soundscapes and hypnotizing loops Barwick has been experimenting with for years, helping dough eyed boys and girls get lost in the ether, as if transcending space & time were an every day occurrence. Florine suggests that purgatorial visits, spirit reunions and time-traveling might actually be daily activities for Ms. Barwick, who has the uncanny ability to lull listeners into a semi-conscious daze, making one feel that even at our most hyper-aware we are still half asleep.

Purchase Florine.

Julianna Barwick- Cloudbank

mix: Gino Soccio's Dance Exercise Music

"It's Alright"
Mort just stumbled upon this banging mix of retro-disco on Beat Electric, which is most the spot if you're into obscure disco and other crazy ass old-school dance ish. As may you be able to guess from his name, producer Gino Soccio, who is actually Canadian, could be described as Giorgio Moroder's "less robotic" brother. The A-side of Dance Exercise Music, which was actually released as a workout comp, features three of Soccio's biggest hits, including "Dancer", which could rage a sorority slumber party as hard as it would a K-fueled warehouse party in Bushwick. My only complaint about this mix is that its thirteen minutes go by way too quickly. Recommened for anyone with an urge to get busy on the dancefloor.

Gino Soccio- Dance Exercise Music

bobkast #26: Another Day in the Park

"Dreaming, Dreaming"
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.

Bobkast #26: Another Day in the Park
Julie Doiron- The Life of Dreams
Atlas Sound- Springtime Instrumental
Suda Chuenbarn- Jong Wai Korn
Lola Arias & Ulises Conti - Te Voy A Vencer Por Knock-Out
High Places- The Tree With Lights In It
Savath et Savalas- La Llama
Amadou et Mariam - Je Te Kiffe
One Blood- Be Thankful For What You Got
Jackie Paris- Make Me Smile
The Coasters- Down In Mexico
Annette Denvil- Oh So Nice
Animal Collective- No More Running
Yo La Tengo- Dreaming
Ducktails- Backyard

Download Bobkast #26: Another Day in the Park

(PC: right click+save; MAC: Mac Users: hold down control+click the above link and select "Download Linked File")

video: Ducktails "Landrunner"

"Let's Rock the Beach"


From the forthcoming Ducktails release on Olde English Spelling Bee. Is it summer yet?

Burial & Four Tet are Moth/Wolf Club

Details on this are incredibly scarce, but BLEEP has page in its catalog for Moth/Wolf Club, a collaboration between mega-producers Four Tet (aka Kieren Hebden) and British dub-step luminary Burial. According to BLEEP, the vinyl was available for pre-order beginning 4/5/09 and is already "out of stock." A Google search didn't yield much, except for an equally as info-less catalog post on htfr.com. Here is all the info we've got so far on what is sure to be one of the year's most enlightening collabo's.

A split release shrouded in darkness (hence the artwork, no sales notes, no audio, no promos). Just a solitary twelve, two sides crafted by two of the most innovative producers of the last twenty years, Burial and Four Tet... Essential Purchase never sounded so right.

(via BLEEP)

[ED Note: Apparently this is not "out of stock", as once listed, on BLEEP. Click here to order.]

mp3: Ólöf Arnalds "Klara"

Lullaby
One of my favorite shows of 2008 was the Kria Brekkan-Ólöf Arnalds performance at the Lutheran Church of the Messiah in Greenpoint. While Kria's improvisational, tape-centric piano ambiance was absolutely gorgeous, Arnalds, who, up until that point, I'd only known through her work with Mum, treated the seated audience to a beautiful set of Icelandic lullaby's and hushed ballads. The gig was so intimate that Arnalds actually breastfed her son, who had been crying all night, on stage in order to get him to calm down. Surely one of the cutest, albeit most bizarre moments I've ever witnessed at a concert, the real highlight, one which I repeatedly come back to, was "Klara", a lullaby that Arnalds wrote for her sister.

Olof Arnalds- Klara

mp3: Juana Molina Live on BBC

"Un Dia"
A radiant morning sun is shining through my window. My Weather Bug iPhone tells me its currently 48 degrees in Greenpoint. The high is 60, the low 44. Juana Molina's last live radio performace on the BBC's Radio 3 is filling my bedroom with a radiance that can only be described, for better or worse, as "magical." It's alluring, seductive, mezmerizing, in your face and, at the same time, incredibly simple. I picture Juana sitting Indian-style in a park in Buenos Aires, flicking dandelions and teaching lady bugs to fly. She stands up, and miraculously floats above the ground, her feet a mere inch above the tallest piece of grass in the park. She pulls a yellow balloon out of her pocket, inflates it and continues float-walking. The balloon pulls her upward, upward and away from the ground. She's smiling, a big kid smile, mud and chocolate smeared across her face. People below watch her drift away, slowly, until she is just a speck in the sky, a molecule.

[Ed note: Juana Molina was just announced, literally, as an addition to the Central Park Summer Stage series. She will perform Wednesday July 8th, 2009.]

Juana Molina - Live on Radio3

mp3: new Atlas Sound & Deerhunter

Time Warp
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.

Atlas Sound "Springtime Instrumental b/w Time Warp"

ambient: Pauline Oliveros Deep Listening

"The Space Is Real"

Pauline Oliveros, known for her role in the post-war electronic music scene, specifically as a member of the San Francisco Music Tape Center in the '60s, is a true innovator. Long before acts like Stars of the Lid and Windy & Carl were making lush waves of manipulated sound, Oliveros was composing lavish instrumental drone pieces and revolutionizing the concept of "sound." While her long and prolific career would be near impossible to summarize in a single post, one of her most notable pieces, Deep Listening, a suite composed with Stuart Dumpster and Panaiotis, has been on heavy late-night, early-morning rotation in my bedroom. Deep Listening, which finds the trio of collaborators composing lush ambiance with "accordion, voice, conch shell, metal pieces, trombone, didjeridu, garden hose, whistling and metal pipes," was recorded "14 feet down into a 186 foot diameter cistern that once held over 2 million gallons of water." If you have even the slightest interest in sound-tracking your dreams, the mystical quality of deep-sea drone, or an affinity for sound-scapes, I HIGHLY recommend you find yourself a copy of Deep Listening.

Purchase Deep Listening

Pauline Oliveros, Stuart Dumpster, Panaiotis- Suiren

cover: Woods "Military Madness"

"Creeps Over Me"

With their vibrant kitchen-sink folk drawing as much from Laurel Canyon as it does from the phosphorescent hue and broken glass strewn back-alleys of industrial Brooklyn, it makes total sense that Woods would cover Graham Nash's political ballad "Military Madness." Sure, the Bush regime is out of office and a new day has risen in the country, albeit one filled with cancerous headlines, ass-backward economic plans and a penchant for multi-national wars, however, Woods cover of Songs for Beginner's opening cut is a supreme example of a band channeling the past in the present, and in turn, transforming what could be a long, lost relic from an underrated Graham Nash solo record into a poignant tune for lost souls searching for purity and truth amidst muckrackers, ponzi-schemers and other greedy mongers of industry. While the lyrical content is fairly obvious, what lurks in Woods' cover is a slinky, almost hypnotizing looseness that spirals and engulfs the blissful jam like a cyclone, sucking up everything in its path, shaking the shit out of it and dropping it back down to earth, a bit battered and bruised but better for the trip.

Be sure to pick up Woods latest release Songs of Shame and while you're at it snag Woods Family Creeps and that Captured Tracks 7". You'll be happy you did.

Woods- Military Madness (Graham Nash cover)