Interview XLR8R March 2009 Link New York has no shortage of concept restaurants, culinary experts, and celebrity chefs. But how many of those Michelin-star chasers will invite you into their house and cook you a healthy vegetarian meal? DJ and musician Sal Principato, percussionist and vocalist of the famed No Wave group Liquid Liquid, extends […]
Interview Pitchfork January 2009 Link While the mantle of punk rock elder can be uncomfortable and ultimately a bit awkward, the members of the Buzzcocks have managed to maintain their dignity and humility three decades into their career. Perhaps it’s because, even with solo careers and a shifting lineup, the Manchester band keeps churning out […]
Article Remix January 2009 Link Instant access is something today’s music fans expect. Now, a number of companies are tapping into mobile technology to simplify collaborations between artists. Along with Websites offering new tools for musicians and music fans that crossbreed social networking and online recording applications, it’s becoming easier to share and edit songs […]
Music Review Remix January 2009 3.5 out of 5 Stars Link Franz Ferdinand hasn’t lost its propulsive pace on Tonight, but like the Greek hero alluded to on lead single “Ulysses,” the group is searching for something. There’s plenty of swagger out of the gate. The dark, slinky “Ulysses” boils over with crunchy synths. “No […]
Music Review Remix January 2009 3.5 out of 5 Stars Link Multifaceted musician Andrew Bird doesn’t let his big vocabulary—lyrically or musically—spoil his refined chamber pop. On Noble Beast, Bird incorporates tasteful flourishes into his polymath approach, sounding more breezy and stripped down than he did on Armchair Apocrypha. “Anonanimal” and “Effigy” open with crisp, […]
Feature XLR8R January 2009 Link It’s known as the Holocaust, but it’s greeted like the rapture. A sound engineer says it sounds “pretty similar to a jet taking off,” and it has the decibel readings to prove it (roughly 130). “The sound moved my face,” blogged Deerhunter’s Bradford Cox. “My balls retracted.” That sound is […]
Interview Remix November 2008 The medium and the message are never separate in the music of Matthew Herbert. Spun partly from esoteric samples — the sounds of laser eye surgery, drums recorded in a hot air balloon or condoms dragged across the floor — his songs appear to be some form of sonic alchemy or […]
Interview Earplug October 2008 It seems like Morgan Geist should be happy. After all, a bar mitzvah is a big deal for any parent, and the producer’s label, Environ, just became a man. But, after 13 years at the helm, Geist seems to be souring on the industry that’s brought acclaim to his label, his […]
Interview Remix October 2008 Link Few rappers, especially those with a song called “Kryptonite Pussy,” attempt to book a tour with their pastor as the opening act. But that’s the way Shunda K (LaShunda Flowers), half of black Christian lesbian rap duo Yo! Majesty, operates. As her partner Jwl B (Jewel Baynham) explains, their message […]
Interview Earplug October 2008 Planes of bright green figures on an Atari-like landscape of oscillating lines, vectors, and grids — these are the sorts of images that accompany performances by San Francisco’s Tussle. It’s an appropriate set of visuals for a band that creates taut, bewitching rhythms. And, with a recent series of personnel shifts […]