Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Chemical Party

This amusing video about chemical reactions was produced by the European Commission for Research and Innovation.  Sometimes I feel like a noble gas.

Being 29 versus 31

Another great one by the comedy duo Garfunkel and Oates.



(If you're on headphones, you may want to turn down the volume.)

Jeff Buckley

Today, Huffington Post commemorates the fifteenth anniversary of Jeff Buckley's death.

"Last Goodbye" from his only studio album, Grace, released in 1994 on Columbia Records


That bassline.  That voice.

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Nerd decor

Totally digging these elements pillows from my gal pal over at Dolphin and Condor.
Lots more to view and purchase at her Zazzle shop!

Saturday, May 26, 2012

Rage Quit

If you get easily frustrated by video games, you will find this really funny.



It's part of a series of Rage Quit videos from Achievement Hunter.  Here's another one about a cat game that made me laugh so hard I cried.

Friday, May 25, 2012

Girl, You Got Skrillex Hair

This cracked me up today (a little NSFW)

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

"When I get compared to artists like José González or Bon Iver, I can't help but think, 'I've been doing this since they were in third grade.'"

Mark Kozelek, as Sun Kil Moon, is slated to release a new album on May 29, called Among the Leaves on his own label, Caldo Verde Records.

This interview with Pitchfork about his new album and growing older is pretty great.

"Sunshine in Chicago" from 2012's Among the Leaves


Favorite line from this song: "My band played here a lot in the 90's when we had lots of female fans and fuck they all were cute.  Now I just sign posters for guys in tennis shoes."  Looking forward to hearing the rest of the album.

Kozelek's the former lead singer of Red House Painters, which formed in 1989.  He's been releasing albums solo as Sun Kil Moon since 2002.  One of my favorite albums is Tiny Cities, which is solely compromised of covers of Modest Mouse songs.  He has such an amazing, distinctive voice that songs sound completely different.

"Ocean Breathes Salty" from 2005's Tiny Cities


I also really want to see this "Mark Kozelek: On Tour" documentary.  

Carrie Brownstein's after-parties

Carrie describes some disappointing after-party experiences for Pitchfork's "Frames"

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

New Liz Phair!

Love this.  She's amazing.

"And He Slayed Her" from her 2010 album Funstyle
 [embed from Perez Hilton]

45 years old and as rocking and hot as ever.  

Monday, May 21, 2012

The Ting Tings

Heard this song on NPR's All Songs Considered and can't stop thinking about it.

"Guggenheim" off their 2012 album Sounds from Nowheresville on Columbia Records.


It rocks, right?

You might remember their song "That's Not My Name" off their debut album, We Started Nothing, but I'll always remember them for performing the Altered Images song "Happy Birthday" on Yo Gabba Gabba.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Young Marble Giants

I swore I posted about this band before because I played them so often on my former radio show.  Turns out I hadn't!


Young Marble Giants were a three-piece post-punk band from Wales.  They were only together between 1978 and 1980 and released one album, "Colossal Youth" on Rough Trade Records.  IT'S GREAT.  Stripped down and minimal: just a drum machine, bass, and guitar, and Alison Statton's introspective vocals.  Their sound is unique yet is so timeless.  One of the youtube comments said they sounded like a combination of Kraftwerk and Joy Division, which I don't necessarily agree with, but they definitely come from that era of music.  "Colossal Youth" is one of my favorite albums and I'd definitely recommend if you're a fan of The xx.

Fan-made video for the track "Choci Loni"



Short set on Peel Session in 1980.  Songs include: "Searching for Mr. Right," "Posed by Models," "N.I.T.A.," "Final Days," and "Brand New Life"


Thursday, May 10, 2012

Bike Path Love

The song is pretty silly and the video is terribly objectifying towards women.  However, it's still pretty cool to see so much of UCSB in a music video.  They roll right by my research lab at 3:04!

Sex With the Hulk

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Ask a grown man

This is Jon Hamm from "Mad Men" answering questions about relationships from teen girls in a segment called Ask A Grown Man for Rookie magazine.  It's funny because he doesn't give a shit.



More Ask A Grown Man segments

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Delta 5

Their 1979 debut single, "Mind Your Own Business"


Classic post-punk!  So timeless!  They were a guy/girl group out of Leeds, friends of Gang of Four.  They also remind me a lot of a funked out Young Marble Giants.

Unfortunately, Delta 5 disbanded after the poor commercial success of their 1981 debut album, See The Whirl.  There is a compilation of Singles & Sessions on Kill Rock Stars.



Monday, May 7, 2012

Emiliana Torrini

"Sunny Road"


Here's a live performance of the same song.  She sounds perfect.
I also love her song Beggar's Prayer.

Friday, May 4, 2012

RIP Adam Yauch

Adam Yauch aka MCA of Beastie Boys has died.  I feel like part of my childhood has gone.

Ad-Rock, MCA and Mike D, from left.   Photo by Phil Andelman via Pitchfork
My family moved to Maryland in 1987 in the middle of a school year.  I was in the 2nd grade.  The first week at a new school  is hard, but the thing that affected me the most, in fact the only thing I even remember from then, was all the other kids on my bus were singing "Brass Monkey" and I was really upset that I didn't know that song too.  

"Brass Monkey" (live)

I grew up in front of cable television.  I had friends who weren't allowed to watch Mtv, which was so bizarre to me.  I'm glad my parents didn't care, as I'm sure it shaped my taste in music.  (In case you hadn't noticed, I mention it a lot!)

I feel like every music blog is going to post Beastie Boys videos today.  They had so many good ones!   In fact, Adam Yauch directed many under the pseudonym "Nathaniel Hornblower."

From Wiki's article for Sabotage: 
The video for "Sabotage" was nominated for Video of the Year, Best Group Video, Breakthrough Video, Best Direction in a Video, and Viewer's Choice at the 1994 MTV Video Music Awards. However, it lost all five categories it was nominated in, losing Video of the Year, Best Group Video and Viewer's Choice to Aerosmith's "Cryin'", and Breakthrough Video and Best Direction in a Video to R.E.M.'s "Everybody Hurts".
During R.E.M. lead singer Michael Stipe's acceptance speech for the Best Direction award, Beastie Boys member MCA bum-rushed the stage in his "Nathaniel Hornblower" disguise, interrupting Stipe to protest the shutout of "Sabotage" from every category it was nominated in.
I'm sure I watched the award show alone in my parents basement, riveted and scandalized when this happened.



Every song from 1994's Ill Communication will remind me of high school.  


Beastie Boys - Sure Shot by BeastieBoys-Official

Every song from 1998's Hello Nasty will always remind me of the first few years as an undergrad, those few years I was floating between schools and majors before I moved to CA.

"Intergalactic"

In 2011, Adam Yauch wrote directed and wrote "Fight for Your Right Revisited" to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the original video's release. Star-studded!

The Beastie Boys were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame just this year.  Not sure what's in store for the surviving members of the Beastie Boys.  Best wishes to them, and the rest of Yauch's friends and family.  

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Living Colour

For Brad... Living Colour's debut album Vivid was released 24 years ago today.

"Cult Of Personality"


"Glamour Boys"

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Song of the day: "SOS"

Started reading 1000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die and couldn't get past ABBA's "S.O.S" from their self-titled 1975 album.  


That hook, it really hooks.  According to Wikipedia, John Lennon and Pete Townshend have both admitted this was one of their favorite pop songs.