For no other reason than my pure joy at recently finding the No Knife/Nine Days Wonder split EP on vinyl, I give you the video for The Red Bedroom, a slightly slower version of which is on the EP. This version is from the fantastic album Riot for Romance!, No Knife’s 2002 swan song.
All posts by Kevin
Sundays with A Tribe Called Quest: Vol. 15
Thanks to Spine Magazine for the heads up on this: Q-Tip reveals information during a Hot 97 interview about Nas-produced documentary on A Tribe Called Quest.
Actor Michael Rappaport, who recently on the VH1 Hip-Hop Honors said he named his son Maceo after Maseo from De La Soul, also is involved on the production/directing end. (Thinking about naming my first son Q-Tip … Q-Tip Murphy. I like it.)
Jurassic 5: Deluxe reissue of debut EP
Pining for the old days of Jurassic 5? Before they broke up? Before they collaborated with Dave Matthews? You’re in luck.
The group is reissuing its seminal debut EP in deluxe version on Decon on Nov. 11.
From a Decon press release:
“Due to contractual disputes, this masterpiece has been out of print since 2004. Now on the heels of the 11th anniversary of its release, Jurassic 5 has decided to re-issue a limited edition of this album with a bonus CD that features 15 exclusive, rare songs and for the first time ever, a full length DVD that chronicles the moment Jurassic 5 broke through, as well as performance footage from their first world tour.”
One of my favorite music/concert-going memories was seeing Jurassic 5 at the old Nile Theater in Mesa and then the next night seeing Cut Chemist, Nu-Mark, Radar and Z-Trip – the vaunted 4-by-8! – perform together in Tempe in a laid-back, secret-ish gathering.
I also was fortunate enough to snag the EP on vinyl at Amoeba Records, one of my greater vinyl finds.
Here’s Unified Rebelution, a track that will be included on the second disc of the reissue and allegedly brought the group together after their two separate crews performed it live in 1993.
The Whigs: Like a Vibration (video)
I never properly recapped last month’s San Diego Street Scene, though it would be easy to sum up briefly the highlights (the National, Del, Vampire Weekend), disappointments (GZA … half-hour late) and WTFs (DEVO … really?).
One of the great surprises had to be the Whigs, who had the misfortune of playing at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, the opening time slot. No matter. We took advantage of the late-arriving crowd and got close for their set – a move that made me think, hey, earplugs might just be a good idea the next time I decide to do this.
Yes, the Whigs are loud. Not overbearing loud. But powerful loud. You-can-feel-your-stomach-shaking-afterward loud. (Also, it’s the kind of loud that blasts to hell your digital camera playback sound if you tried to take a little video of the show … but nevermind that.) It’s all the more impressive that it comes from a trio, without the added benefit of a second guitar.
Check out the video for Like a Vibration, the leadoff track on the well-received Mission Control. (Still, this remains my favorite Mission Control.)
Calexico on LiveDaily Sessions
If there’s one album I haven’t given the full attention it most likely deserves, it has to be Calexico’s Carried to Dust. I’ve really only listened in parts or used it as companion music while I work.
Mostly, I’ve been waiting to get it on vinyl (Stinkweeds was sold out when I went for it, which is great news for the band).
The band – well, frontman Joey Burns, anyway – stopped in for a session at LiveDaily and played three songs off the new album, including Writer’s Minor Holiday, which has stood out as an early favorite.
Incoming: Q-Tip and the Cool Kids, Nov. 17
On the heels of Q-Tip’s new video comes even better news: Q-Tip and the Cool Kids are coming to Marquee Theatre on Nov. 17 as part of the 2K Sports Bounce Tour.
Tickets ($27 advance; $30 day of show) are on sale here.
That’ll give everyone here a good 13 days to soak up Q-Tip’s new album, The Renaissance, due out Nov. 4.
Here’s the video for Gettin’ Up:
As for the Cool Kids, you can grab a free download of Delivery Man on Green Label Sound — where music meets Mountain Dew (does this make the Dew-sponsored Dale Earnhardt Jr. a fan of the Cool Kids?).
Here is the video for the same song:
Sundays with A Tribe Called Quest: Vol. 14
As Nov. 4 fast approaches — the alleged date for release of Q-Tip’s The Renaissance — we are treated to another peek at what the album might hold. Honestly, if The Renaissance is as good as Gettin’ Up and Move are hinting at, then the wait will all be worth it.
Check out the new video for Move, directed by Rik Cordero, whose work we saw earlier this year with Wale and the Roots.
azcentral.com preview: Born Ruffians
Born Ruffians return to Phoenix for a show on Saturday at Modified. I interviewed singer/guitarist Luke LaLonde. Thus, the resulting story.
Plants and Animals and Nurses open the show. Buy tickets ($11).
If you’re already a Born Ruffians fan, you’ll wanna hit the show because the band will be selling the new Little Garcon EP, which is available in a variety of formats and includes remixes from Four Tet (I Need a Life) and White Williams (Red, Yellow and Blue).
REMINDER: Enter the Jaguar Love contest to see them on Oct. 21.
Murs: Can It Be (video)
Having spent a week with the new Murs album, Murs for President, I still haven’t formed a solid opinion on it. I do know that it’s no Murray’s Revenge (such a snob thing to say, I know).
Warner Bros. certainly opened up the purse strings on the promotional/production budget for this album, Murs’ major-label debut. Because Murs has embodied the underground everyman — God’s Work sums it up — it’s hard to reconcile a couple of the guest spots on President: will.i.am and Snoop Dogg. (I won’t even mention sampling James Blunt on Everything.) I know, the underground vs. mainstream argument is tired, but the very inclusion of at least will.i.am might turn off the most stubborn indie heads; after all, it’s hard to forgive the direction to which he helped lead Black Eyed Peas. (Sidenote: Not included on the album was the supposed first single, Dreadlocks, that was not well received.)
If that sounds like I don’t like President, that’s not really true. I do like it. I don’t love it. Not like I love Murray’s Revenge. Tracks like Can It Be (video below), though, keep me coming back, for the blue-collar style that always defined Murs: “I could have done a Nas and screamed hip-hop is dead / I got up off my ass and did something instead.”
The Baseball Project offers contest
I talked a few times earlier this year about The Baseball Project, the collaboration of Scott McCaughey and Steve Wynn (check a Q&A with Wynn here).
What better time to discuss the band again than during the playoffs? To that end, the group is putting on a pretty cool contest: They want you to predict the World Series winner (and in how many games) for a chance to win a Baseball Project T-shirt and baseball and a copy of J.C. Bradbury’s The Baseball Economist.
E-mail thebaseballproject@gmail.com with the subject “World Series Pick.” Go here for more.