The Best of TVD's Idelic Hour with Jon Sidel

First broadcast 3/26/10:
"Circles"

This year’s SXSW conference in Austin was an amazing convergence of all things “music.” Being a long time SXSW attendee and music bizz “insider,” I knew to expect thick, drunken crowds and lots of “walk-about.” More than anything else I saw tons of great friends. I think all of “us” spent all week walking in circles.

I arrived back into the arms of Laurel Canyon drained. I know I had seen some great music but I was humming not a note. What comes to mind was an expression Don, the lead guitar player from my old band use to use…

“Blown out by rock”!





Upon putting together this week’s mix, I had not a clue what I wanted to hear. I was moody. By chance I stumbled on the Soul Coughing album El Oso. “Circles” seemed like a fitting muse and I started playing off a theme of being drained & lost.

I had just gotten the new Pavement greatest hits album and had read the lengthy press bio on what an important band they had become. It reminded me of moving to LA, after spending the late 80’s in east village NYC. I had been friends with Mark Ibold and was excited to see the band’s 1st LA show.

Funny, back then I often felt a bit lost as a New Yorker in LA. There has never been a time since then that I stopped listening to the songs of Steven Malkmus. It will be surely cool to have Pavement back for one more summer “babe!”


This week in the “mix” a dose of new bands, Portugal The Man is sounding pretty cool. Lo-fi teenagers from Chicago, The Smith Westerns have a buzz coming of out Austin. So does LA’s Fool Gold, don’t sleep on band leader, Luketop’s solo album “Friends.” His song “Lord, Save Me From This Valley” is at the top of the set. Sultry Jonneine Zapata sums it up with the question, “What are we gonna do?”

Enjoy,

xosidealer
idelicsounds.com | @sidelic

TVD Recommends | Lightfoot, Saturday (8/14) at the Rock and Roll Hotel

Why, you can RSVP right here and find the band online right here.

So, see you there?

TVD's Twitter Music Monday for 8/09/10

This is truly world-stopping news: One’s taste in music is linked to one’s personality. It is a fact of science, according to Professor Adrian North of Heriot-Watt University, who undertook a large study examining the relationship between taste in music and personality traits.

BBC News reported on this study here, and you should read the article if only for the description of heavy metal fans as “quite delicate things,” who are neither “suicidally depressed” nor “a danger to themselves and society in general.” Phew!

The article also presents a handy rubric of musical tastes and their corresponding personality traits. I thought it might be fun to look through some #musicmonday tweets and find ones that exemplify these important findings.

First up: Indie. According to the study, people who listen to indie have low self esteem, an abundance of creativity, do not work hard, and are not gentle. (Excuse me, I have to go throw my Vampire Weekend albums into a bonfire now.)

What luck! The first indie #musicmonday message I’ve come across is by Twitter user @party_sloth. Sloth! This is too easy. Partying is often a pretty creative activity, especially if, like mine, your parties involve a lot of Pictionary. And partying is certainly never gentle. @party_sloth tweets that he is “addicted to Menomena – Mines right now.” Addiction is generally contra-indicative of self-confidence, so there you have it. With one tweet and one user name, we see the truth behind Professor North’s study.

Let’s move on to “chart pop” next. Twitter user @bellavalentine2 wants her followers to listen to Eminem and Rihanna’s “Love the Way You Lie,” and adds that “Boys should never, NEVER hit girls.” (No snark: Endorsed. Maybe not the song, I haven’t heard it because I am not, apparently, a “chart pop.”)

The music/personality study says that chart pops have high self esteem, are not creative, are hardworking, outgoing, gentle, and not at ease. Based exclusively on one tweet and a username, I’d say we have conclusive proof that all chart pops are as the study describes. Bellavalentine clearly thinks she’s hot stuff, or she wouldn’t call herself “Bellavalentine,” no? And the “2” at the end indicates someone else had that username first, so there’s your lack of creativity. Her tweet suggests that she is working hard to push her gentle message, and is doing so in an outgoing way. And she’s tweeting about something she doesn’t like in the world, so she’s clearly not at ease. Professor North has done it again!

I think one more tweet from one more genre should provide conclusive evidence that North’s findings are correct. How about the “gentle creatures” listening to rock/heavy metal? (I’d do opera, but not many Twitter folk are #musicmonday-ing the Magic Flute, believe it or not.) Rockers, according to the study, are characterized more by what they don’t have than by what they do: low self-esteem, not hard-working, and not outgoing are hallmarks of the heavy metal type. But they are also creative, gentle, and at ease. They’re manatees, basically, is what this study is saying.

Twitter user @BLOODTREES certainly seems to fit the type! First of all, his username is in all caps, which suggests a low-self esteem need to assert himself. BLOODTREES recommends “Putrid Blood (Thrash Metal from Serbia) http://youtu.be/5hAzO5DzQ9s #metalmonday #musicmonday #metal.” I appreciate the extra hashtags—I would never have guessed that Putrid Blood was in any way a metal song without them. She’s tweeting instead of working, so she must have a poor work ethic, and Twitter is inherently not an outgoing activity. The pieces are certainly falling into place. She’s listening to music from Serbia, which is definitely creative, unless of course she is from Serbia. Blood is associated with menstruation, and menstruation is a feminine, and therefore gentle, trait, so the repeated use of the word “blood” seems to indicate a gentle spirit. As for at ease: Her username has the word “trees,” which reminds me of hammocks, and everyone knows that lying in a hammock is a great way to feel at ease.

Thus proved! Hooray science!

Role #mmodel: @EricGM, describing my Thursday and Friday: “Bouncing Souls ‘Anchors Aweigh’ and ‘Ghosts on the Boardwalk.’ Gaslight Anthem ‘American Slang.’ #musicmonday,” If you’re nice, I’ll tell you about my Gaslight Anthem concert experience.

My #musicmonday pick: Sometimes I’m a manatee and listen to metal. Today: Sin Dios’s Alerta Antifascista. (h/t to the brilliant, profane No Gods No Vegetables for this band and, honestly, any metal I find my manatee brain enjoying.)

R.L.M. | 7.8.25—8.10.10

Background here and here.
(Hug your moms for me, ok?)

We'll return tomorrow.

The Best of TVD's Idelic Hour with Jon Sidel

From day one, I had a vision when it came to the blog that a vast percentage of you who were office/cube bound during the day would be delivered some sort of sonic relief by the music posted here daily, as if it were a radio station of sorts.

That vision finally crystallized only about six months ago with the addition of our Friday feature, Jon Sidel's 'The Idelic Hour' which literally IS a radio show, produced exclusively for The Vinyl District, direct from the studios of an internet radio giant in Santa Monica, CA.

Jon's off for some much deserved R&R this week and we thought we'd take the opportunity to reintroduce you to the show via some well chosen reruns, now that we're streaming the show as well as offering it as a podcast download. (And I have NO idea what took so long to stream the show. I'm an idiot.)

All this week, it's The Best of TVD's Idelic Hour with Jon Sidel. —Ed.


First broadcast 5/27/10:
Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

Memorial Day weekend is here. Does this mean summer or June gloom?

It’s coming up on a year that I’ve started doing radio shows and it only seemed obvious to use this week’s holiday as the inspiration for a playlist. Fact is, every day is Memorial Day on my turntable! It’s all about paying tribute the great artists and songs of the past while celebrating the new. By mix’s end it was really about just “keeping on keeping on!’


I did start my week thinking on a commemorative tip. I noted recent anniversaries of departures and arrivals; Miles Davis, Sonny Boy Williamson, Ian Cutis, Frank Sinatra and Johnny Guitar Watson.

Ultimately, I felt these angels sitting on my shoulder whispering “play us some new cats!” So indeed, this week’s hour is loaded with new releases from Midlake, Dead Weather, First Aid Kit, Luther Russell, School of Seven Bells, LCD Soundsystem, Toro Y Moi, The Cults and Flying Lotus.

xosidealer
idelicsounds.com | @sidelic

TVD's Press Play

It's our weekly Music Monday recap of the tracks the folks in the press offices want you to be hearing. We post - you decide.

Cheyenne Marie Mize - Best (Mp3)
Brass Bed - Begs Me Not To Beg (Mp3)
P (Ft. Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros) - Brother (Mp3)
The Drums - Down By The Water (Mp3)
Shapes And Sizes - Tell Your Mum (Mp3)
Bonjay - Stumble (Mp3)
Twin Shadow - I Can't Wait (Gordon Voidwell Remix) (Mp3)
Neon Hitch - What Starry Eyes Know (Mp3)
All authorized for download!

TVD's Idelic Hour with Jon Sidel

Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

As I recall, it was a hot summer’s day in 1990 that I got a call from Perry Farrell. He and Casey, his longtime girlfriend and creative partner were in an editing room working on their film “The Gift.” Perry sounded completely stoned. I remember thinking “and I thought I was strung out … this guy is wacked!”

What I thought was so wacked was Perry's description of a “utopian” rock festival he called Lollapalooza. Right off the bat I loved the name. He wanted to work together creating a tent, a psychedelic circus of sorts, that would go hand in hand with a stage featuring our generation of bands. I loved his dream and sarcastically suggested he take a few more “hits” and keep this “Lolla-whatever” nod going.


I’ll be dammed, but a year later I drove up to the Lollapalooza stage in my Chevy Impala convertible and dumped Gibby Haynes right into a Buthole Surfers set. Perry’s dream turned into a grungy explosion and launched a bunch of our friends into stardom.

Many of those band’s moments have come and gone but it seems Perry and MWA have done a cool job revitalizing Lollapalooza. What became a bit of an over-commercialized bummer now feels like a well thought out rock festival whose festival grounds and diverse line up competes with any world-wide. Welcome back Soundgarden and The Strokes! Arcade Fire playing their brilliant new album, MGMT and tons more.

Perry, you keep dreaming brother!

xosidealer
idelicsounds.com | @sidelic

The Idelic Hit of the Week:
Young Blood - The Naked & Famous

TVD Takeover | Jesca Hoop

A playlist for you of ten of my favorites:

Tune Yards - She is a very surprising artist. She's got wild, feminine creativity. She is quite raw and childlike. Her voice is striking. She is not completely accessible. . .even for my taste and I like that.

White Denim - I like the way these boys twist and turn. The guitars take an original view on themselves. It’s neat messy music.

MIA - I don’t care if she moved into Brentwood with a Hollywood tycoon. . .MIA rules in her domain. Although I haven’t heard her new record yet. . .I am really hoping that she has held the standard.

Ike and Tina - I love early Tina. . .man. . .if I had pipes like hers.

The Shins - James Mercer is a great songwriter if you ask me. I never really know what he is talking about, although I know all the words to his songs. I like that.


The Clash - I can’t believe I never saw this band live. . .I don’t believe I have actually lived.

Kate Bush - Naturally. . .'The Dreaming' is one of the best records ever made..but if you want to hear an obscure yet truly brilliant song search "Emptying The Bull Ring" by Kate Bush.

Elbow - I have seen Elbow shows like. . .35 times. . .seriously. . .I love every time. They put on one of the best live shows I have ever seen. Way to go boys.

Jaime T - I like this kid a lot. . .He loves The Clash. . .you can tell. . .He is blending hip hop. . .punk. . .reggae. . .rock in with his own bag o tricks. . .I like his band. . .They’re in it to win it.

Paul Simon - Always makes me feel at home. No matter how long it has been since I have heard a tune of his. . .it always comes back to me. I grew up on his music so I guess its stitched in there.

TVD Takeover | Jesca Hoop

My Two Favorite Live Acts:

Saul Williams | Saul Williams, who I always knew as a spoken word Poet for the hip hop generation, appeared in a dive bar in Austin, Texas with his punk band. BEST SHOW I HAVE EVER SEEN !!!

In my mind Saul (and friends) make true punk music. Punk music...not the Vivienne Westwood tailored tartan wearing mohawkins screaming about Anarchy through safety pinned lips (which is all good and fine) but rule breaking music. Music that is defiant, rebellious, aggressive, smart, of its own and home grown. This music was all of those things.


Saul is a wordsmith. He comes with a message. In this show he brought what I knew he could already do. . . spit mad lyrics, but I wasn’t expecting him to come out as a native war chief rocker dressed in battle garb ready to take on the stage like an enemy attacking. He had with him two other rock eccentrics. One who played the MPC and the other played the guitar. Visually they were impressive. Sonically I had never really heard anything like it before. . . or since. I won't try to describe it more than I already have. . . because I won't do it justice.

What I can say though is that it caused me to get that mean look on my face and bang my head. Good shit. Good Hard music blended with Saul's mind bending lyrics and physical presence makes for my kind of show !!! Well, one kind of my kind of show anyway. He (they) is (are) a must see. . .

Saul Williams on Myspace




The Ditty Bops | I am in Love with these girls. I know Amanda and Abbey (The Ditty Bops) personally and I can say that knowing them in their life beyond the stage only spreads further my vision of them as true artists.

Their whole life is a work of art. Every element if you ask me. So when you see them on the stage, you see in full bloom the life they are leading. It's a delightful world that they occupy and create day after day. Full of imagination and laughter. Their music is sweet and simple but not uncomplicated or innocent. They can be dark and meddlesome as well.


Going to one of their shows is like taking a row boat through a miniature haunted fun house on a rainbowy day. They refuse to grow up. Thank goodness. Oh, and did I mention that they are fit? Very good looking girls those Ditty Bops!!

Abbey plays the guitar and piano and Amanda plays the mandolin, guitar and other gadgets including helium balloons. Their shows are theatrical and amusing. Amanda is always smiling and Abbey inevitably has something witty to say. The world is a better place with the Ditty Bops in it. Go see em...go get young again !!!

The Ditty Bops on Myspace

TVD Ticket Giveaway | Mumiy Troll, Wednesday (8/11) w/Run Run Run at The Black Cat

I'm reminded of that old Steve Martin line, "...It's like those French have a different word for everything."

But in this case it'd be Russia's Mumiy Troll who in effect are the Russian version of any huge act that you can name over here in the States or the UK. The Moscow foursome are quite simply the biggest band in their home country. Some fun factoids as examples:

Mumiy Troll's video for Vladividstok 2000 was the first video featured on Russian MTV when it went live in 1998 (i.e. Russia's "Video Killed the Radio Star.")

Mumiy Troll was dubbed "the most dangerous band in the world" and banned by the local communist party in their early days.

Mumiy Troll is so big that they coined their own genre - rockapops - which young Russian bands have been emulating for years (not to mention signature hair styles and clothes.)





Ready to jump aboard? Mumiy Troll open a very rare North America tour next Wednesday night (8/11) right here in DC at The Black Cat and we've got a pair of tickets to see the band on us.

Check out the video, download the Mp3, and let us know who you think the band most resembles out of our current crop of homegrown heroes in the comments to this post and the most insightful of the bunch wins the pair of tickets. It's that simple.

We'll choose our winner next Tuesday (8/10) and remember to leave us a contact email address!

Mumiy Troll - Polar Bear (Mp3)
Authorized for download!

TVD Ticket Giveaway | Chris Shiflett & The Dead Peasants w/Ari Shine, Monday 8/9, at DC9

Foo Fighters' Chris Shiflett has set aside his big, brash, rock guitar in favor of a more stripped-down Americana feel that's quite akin to a number of classic country artists (Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Hank Williams), rockabilly (Gene Vincent, Elvis, Eddie Cochran), and deep-rooted rock bands (The Replacements, The Rolling Stones, X).

His self-titled release Chris Shiflett & The Dead Peasants hit your local record stores last month, and this month Chris and the band have hit the road to introduce you to these new batch of songs in person.

The tour stops Monday night (8/9) at DC9 and with Chris is special guest Ari Shine, he of today's 'First Date.'




We've got a pair of tickets to award one of you simply for the asking in the comments to this post. Let us know why they should be bestowed upon you—with a contact email address!—and the most convincing of the bunch gets in free on Chris (and us.)

We're closing this one first thing Monday morning to give you plenty of time to conjure up some good old fashioned arm twisting. So, let's hear it, hm?

Chris Shiflett & The Dead Peasants - Get Along (Mp3)
Authorized for download!

TVD First Date | Ari Shine

Ari Shine joins Foo Fighters' Chris Shiflett & The Dead Peasants this coming Monday night (8/9) at DC9. Watch this space for your chance to see them both and win tickets to Monday's show.


"My parents had loads of vinyl from the 60s and 70s, mostly by Israeli artists and singer/songwriters from that golden age of music. My dad harmonized beautifully with his favorites and introduced me to Simon and GarfunkeI as well as the Beatles, whose Magical Mystery Tour was so inviting. Who were these masked characters on the cover and where were they taking me? Another early vinyl memory is of staring at the cover of Teaser and the Firecat by Cat Stevens on our living room table. I pondered his lyrics about being followed by a moonshadow and created cartoons in my mind inspired by the drawings on the sleeve. Billy Joel was a family favorite and served as my gateway drug to rock and roll. His new wave era album Glass Houses has one of my favorite pairs of LP photos. The cover features a leather jacket clad Billy raising a rock to the glass house indicated in the title. The back is a shot of his unrepentant image from behind a shattered window. From examining the artwork to putting the stylus in the groove, listening to these records provided me with a full sensory immersion experience. These albums seemed to leap off the turntable. The moments of scratching leading up to when they kicked in were an essential part of the dramatic arc.

By middle school I was playing guitar so I spent most of my free time cutting my teeth to the music of my heroes. I used Eric Clapton’s live version of “Crossroads” from the “Princes Trust Benefit Concert” as a launching pad and traded licks with him for hours. I also made journeys to the public library to borrow records. My local branch had tons of LPs, many by acts I did not recognize. I was fascinated by their quasi-mystical covers and the names on their dusty jackets. Who were Blue Oyster Cult and Earth Wind and Fire? They all sounded equally heavy to me. Then came the rumblings of puberty and I found two records there that blew my rapidly rebelling preteen mind: “Electric” by The Cult and “Appetite For Destruction” by Guns And Roses. The latter I took home to our house with the original Robert Williams artwork which was soon banned.


A couple years later I had a girlfriend a few years older than me with a college radio show. She was a purist who would rarely buy anything but vinyl. I remember walking through the station library while she was on the air. I was intrigued by the white stickers different DJs left on the albums. Their comments seemed like secrets passed down from an invisible musical mentor; older, wiser and willing to share knowledge.

In high school we congregated at friends houses and listened to Sabbath, Zeppelin, and Allman Brothers albums. It was here I was exposed to a heretofore unimagined use for gatefold sleeves. Used record shopping became a new obsession. I remember how excited I was to have found a copy of the rare Captain Beyond debut album, even with its holographic cover mostly ripped off. While heavy rock was the order of the day, it was by no means the only genre on my radar. I first heard Miles Davis’s Bitches Brew and Innervisions by Stevie Wonder on vinyl and marveled at the sonic depth of the classic analogue recordings. Syncopated 70s masterworks like these provided an important counterpoint to the sludgy riffing that was a constant part of my musical diet. Later, it was on LP that I first experienced Sunny Day Real Estate’s debut, Alien Lanes by Guided By Voices, and Urge Overkill’s seminal Touch and Go releases. Of the burgeoning Britpop scene, Pulp’s Different Class LP and the sublime debut by Gene were favorites and two of the first 180 gram pressings I owned.



So much of my musical education is tied in with vinyl that it’s difficult not to feel like I am leaving out some essential moment or memory. As a band member I can think of few things as exciting as having a box of a release on 7 or 12 inch vinyl delivered to the door. Record stores are safehouses for me when touring. I have particular affection for the Mom and Pops that continue to stock new vinyl and have supported the reemergence of the format. I like to imagine people around the world taking chances on records fueled by the same love of discovery." —Ari Shine

Find Ari at his Official Website | Facebook | Twitter | Myspace

Ari Shine - Not Your Trial (Mp3)
Authorized for download!

TVD Cubicle Theatre

Thought these two paired rather nicely...

Thanks to Jeff Wells.

TVD Takeover | Jesca Hoop

Something Old, Something New-ish:

Something Newish | I heard Bon Iver for the first time in late 2008. It was the first record from a new artist that I had heard in many years that I latched on to. I love his record, 'For Emma Forever Ago.' It was written in a snowy cabin up in Wisconsin over several months. You can hear the isolation.

There isn't too much information on this record. The stories are eloquent and simple. His sonic choices are fresh. Most of all these records come from the heart. Here is a link to one of the songs from the record :




Something Old | I was introduced to the Bulgarian Womens choirs (of which there a many) first by listening to a Kate Bush song 'Deeper Understanding' from the album 'The Sensual World.' If you listen to the track...there are these soothing yet piercing voices that enter in the first chorus.

I had never heard anything like them before. I set out to find who these women are. My hunt lead me to Les Mystre De Voix Blugare. Their record titled 'Les Mystre De Voix Bulgare' is a shocking piece of work. My favourite on the record is 'Kalimankou Denkou.'

I cannot find a link for this particular song but I have found for you a rather playful performance by them on The Johnny Carson Show...back in the day.

TVD Takeover Giveaway | Jesca Hoop

Notoriously I'm out of step in general with my musical tastes. Much like Jesca it seems, and Johnny Ramone before her, I tend to think everything that came earlier on is always better. Always more inspired and genuine than something newly downloadable.

I mean, how can it not be, really? Most everything is revivalist to some degree which inherently arrives without a pedigree. . . unless there's some taste exhibited. Something new sewn into the fabric. A hint or authenticity bordering on a sense of danger or mystery. A world-weary need to reinvent. To reimagine.

Which Ms. Hoop has in spades.

And notoriously I rarely, if ever, agree with critics. But I am sensing some like minds amidst a number of them out there when it comes to Jesca's new LP, "Hunting My Dress."


“She spins a balance between play and poignancy, complexity and catchiness, without breaking a thread.” —The Observer

“In a voice that ranges from gentle, crystalline charm to edgy intensity, she’s in turn playful, bluesy, haunting, and folky. What prevents this all from becoming a mish-mash of textures is Hoop’s single minded passion, which lends a self assured cohesion to her diversity.” 4 STARS —Uncut



“A new sound that is both studied and inspired.” 4 STARS —Q

“Hunting My Dress rejoices in off-the-cuff dreamlike sensuality, pitching and rolling in all sorts of pleasingly unexpected directions.” 4 STARS —Mojo

“Veers between Kate Bush meets Bat For Lashes away-with-the-fairies pop, PJ Harvey ballsy blues-rock, and sultry folk – all done with the kind of slightly off-kilter art-house production you’d expect of Bjork.” —The Telegraph


Yet as I often say here, don't take my word for it. Hell, in this guise I'm a critic.

We have a copy of Jesca Hoop's new LP to award one among you who can pick up the thread started here and run with the baton with some well wrung words in the comments to this post. Older music/newer music—where am I wrong or right? How does Jesca fit in among this thread?

We'll choose one from the insightful bunch next Tuesday, 8/10, and important—remember to leave us a contact email address!


Jesca Hoop -Feast of the Heart (Mp3)
Authorized for download!

TVD Fresh Track | New from School of Seven Bells

Working its summer magic, shot in Brooklyn and directed by David Altobelli, School of Seven Bell's "Windstorm" video has premiered on the band's Facebook page. Like 'em and the video kicks into gear immediately.

(And for your iPod shuffling, we have the track free below.)

School of Seven Bells - Windstorm (Mp3)
Authorized for download!

TVD Takeover | Jesca Hoop

Jesca Hoop's Favorite Records on Vinyl:

Kate Bush - The Dreaming: I particularly love 'The Dreaming' because it is totally mad and completely original.

Led Zeppelin - 1, 2, 3: These records were the sound track to my high school years.

Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon: I found this one in my brother's collection when I was 18. It was a perfect complement to my new found fondness for recreational drugs.

Fleetwood Mac - Tusk: Thanx to my Dad I grew up on 'Rumors.' It wasn’t till later that I found 'Tusk.' The band sounds like they are going nuts on this record. You can hear how much fun they are having.

Joni Mitchell - Court and Spark and Song For A Sea Gull: I think these records are an essential for any young woman. They are such good mood records. I would draw, sip tea, sit by the fire, and gaze while listening to these records.

Tom Waits - Mule Variations: This is my favorite of all of the Waits records.

The Beatles - White Album and Rubber Soul: I was one of those kids who wasn’t allowed to listen to The Beatles. My mother wouldn’t let me....so discovering The Beatles records beyond HELP was a delicious off limits treat.

The Shins - Wincing the Night Away: Oddly enough it is rare that I like a new band enough to buy their record. The Shins are an one a few exceptions. This record was hugely refreshing.


Led Zeppelin I Can't Quit You Baby (Mp3)
Pink Floyd - The Great Gig In The Sky (Mp3)
Fleetwood Mac - Tusk (Mp3)
The Beatles - Girl (Mp3)
The Beatles - While My Guitar Gently Weeps (Mp3)

TVD's Twitter Music Monday for 8/02/10

Kid Cudi dominated #musicmonday this week. Not only did lots of people link to him, they linked to an unusually wide variety of songs.

This week, my brother Mark, who is temporarily residing in my guest room on my floor, is lending his classically trained musician ears to this venture. (Mark tweets, hilariously, at @bad_moniker, by the by.) We listened to every one of these darn #musicmonday Kid Cudi songs. These are our thoughts.

Up Up & Away (The Wake & Bake Song): “Clip” and “bud” in the first 30 seconds. Then “motherf***er,” “who gives a f***,” and the “N” word in one verse. This is not very subtle. Also, it ends in a monologue. From Mark: “The music of it sounded exactly like a Killers song, or the Bravery. And then I got distracted by the kitten playing with a dolphin.” Obviously, we are related.

David Guetta featuring Kid Cudi—Memories: Mark has started to sing “Cats” before the song even begins. When it does begin, I immediately start dancing. But, like, dancing sarcastically? I’m positive this is possible. Also, I think this song might have the MOST stupid lyrics I have ever heard in my entire life. Mark is now singing falsetto Black Eyed Peas and says “uuuueghhh.”

Mojo So Dope: “This is really bad,” says Mark. “I’m of the opinion that you should either rap or sing, and if you try to do both at the same time you do neither.” I am now unsure if I know the difference between rapping and singing, but get distracted because good heavens, Kid Cudi the naughty words! I am clutching my pearls over here, and I have a fouler mouth than...actually I’ve been out-sworn by my grandma and by a nun, so never mind.

Erase Me (featuring Kanye West): This is an overhand clap kind of song. Don’t know what I mean? Go to 2:50 of this iconic video. Mark and I are both disappointed that what could actually have been a HILARIOUS diarrhea joke gets softened (get it?) when Kudi pronounces the line “die Aria.”

Consequence featuring Kid Cudi—Buggin’ Out: The googly eyes in the music video for this song are freaking. Me. Out. Also, I was trying to find the deep meaning behind them, and then I re-looked at the name of the song. Buggin’ Out. Bug eyes. Duh. Mark charitably deems this one “less irritating.”

I Be High: Guys, guys! I think Kid Cudi likes to get high! In a remarkable coincidence, this song does to me the same thing most abusable substances do: Makes me really sleepy. As Mark says “This is so boring. Why did I ever agree to this?” One long minute later: “He was clearly low while writing this.” Ahahaha. No.

Dat New New: This song features the lyric “You guys think acute but Cudi is obtuse.” Hey Cudi? Obtuse: Not a complimentary modifier.

Mark, summing up his experience, says “I really hope he doesn’t get big.” At this point I inform Mark that Kid Cudi already is big. Mark doesn’t get out much, because I keep him locked in my apartment.

Role #mmodel: “zufanek: Dne?ní #musicmonday v?nuju mojí nejposlouchan?j?í skladb? roku 2008 od brooklynských hipík? MGMT http://post.ly/poh7” MGMT? Brooklyn? Hip? Czech!

My #musicmonday pick: I am a sucker for power pop and Free Energy’s Bang Pop (also an overhand clap song…) has been making me happy.

Mark’s #musicmonday pick: Swing, by the Bloody Hollies. He came up with a bunch of reasons for choosing this jam but I don’t feel like typing any of them.

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TVD Summer Vinyl Giveaway | R.E.M "Fables Of The Reconstruction" 180g Reissue

Oh, man - I just got one of those icy spine shivvers.

(Want one too?)

R.E.M's "Fables Of The Reconstruction" ...is 25 years old.

TWENTY-FIVE. (And I bet more than a few of you aren't even that old, hm? Put that beer down.)



In celebration of time flying like you just can't believe, Capitol/ I.R.S. have released an expanded 25th Anniversary 2CD and digital edition of the R.E.M.’s classic 1985 album.

The new edition features the digitally remastered original album, plus 14 previously unreleased demo recordings, cut prior to the album’s studio sessions, including one long-sought track that has never been released. The commemorative release also adds insightful new liner notes by R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck, with the 2CD package presented in a lift-top box with a poster and four postcards.


This being The Vinyl District however, we've got a copy of the remastered original album on 180-gram vinyl to mail to one of you old codgers.

We'll keep it easy because, well, you've earned it after all these years. Simply sing the praises of the band, or the release, or some far flung memory from 'back in the day' in the comments to this post and the most compelling gets a brand new copy mailed to him or her around which new memories will be borne. Or forgotten. Who knows.

Remember to leave us a contact email address—important!—and we'll choose one of you nostalgia buffs next Monday, 8/9!

TVD Takeover | Jesca Hoop

"My stitching was born to fall apart," Jesca Hoop says upon some reflection on her personal journey—and damn if the best music isn't borne of such sentiment. (And sometimes a blog or two.)

That precarious muse has lead to the release of her sophomore LP, "Hunting My Dress" out just last week on Vanguard and already the UK press has their hearts set to swoon:

“In a voice that ranges from gentle, crystalline charm to edgy intensity, she’s in turn playful, bluesy, haunting, and folky. What prevents this all from becoming a mish-mash of textures is Hoop’s single minded passion, which lends a self assured cohesion to her diversity.” FOUR STARS —Uncut

“This is a swirling, swooning album with an earthy, minimalist sound powered mainly by her delightfully shape-shifting, slippery voice that rises and falls from wistful and elegant to rich and sultry.” —NME

Declarations of praise aside, Jesca's an unabashed vinyl fan and this week between promotional jaunts for the new record, she'll be setting aside some time to turn US on to what's turned HER on and what informs her myriad of musical perspectives.

So, sit back and relax—Jesca's your DJ for this week.

A favourite vinyl moment. | I'll never forget listening to Joni Mitchell's 'Song for a Seagull' on vinyl one a misty morning while sitting on the coverd porch in a rocking chair amidst the redwood trees.


The songs, the mist, the tea, the trees all became the same thing a total environment. We listened to the record like it was a movie. And again and again. That record (and on vinyl) signifies those days of a gorgeous simplicity... of unfettered youth... of freedom.

"Jesca Hoop's music is like a four sided coin. She is an old soul, like a black pearl, a good witch or a red moon. Her music is like going swimming in a lake at night." — Tom Waits