vinyl

Steady, As She Goes (acoustic version)

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For some reason, I’ve had pretty excellent luck lately digging around for vinyl. Last week, I found two different 12″ singles of Persephone’s Bees’ Nice Day with about four remixes of the song (to be posted soon).

Then before the Soul Position show on Wednesday I hit Zia in Tempe. That Zia store keeps 7″ vinyl in crates on the floor (do you see what I do for you?). Anyway, they had a new Raconteurs 7″ single for the acoustic version of Steady, As She Goes b/w (backed with … thanks Eric!) Call it a Day, which is on the forthcoming album Broken Boy Soldiers. Go to this Amazon link for the CD (no, I’m not making any commission on it) and you can also check out streaming video of two tracks live from Irving Plaza in New York.


But I have one question: I have the first Steady, As She Goes 7″ which has a letter “A” on the sleeve and the labels of the record. This one has a “C,” which leads me to believe I’m missing “B.” Does anyone have a clue about this lettering system?

Anyway, here’s the acoustic version of Steady, converted from the 7″. This version was the free download last week at iTunes, but Apple puts those files in a straitjacket and handcuffs. Whatever, vinyl sounds better and it’s fresh out of the shrinkwrap, too.

I do like the vibe of this version: a little looser and there’s some laughing (hey, we’re rock stars! this is fun, weeeee!) near the end. Even better, I love the rhythm/tempo change from the verse to the chorus on this version. A little more bluesy.

The Raconteurs | Steady, As She Goes (acoustic)

live

Soul Position pics

5 Comments

Great, great show last night by Soul Position. I realized it’d been some time since I’d been to a real fun hip-hop show, and SP fixed all that. I also highly recommend opener Blue Scholars from Seattle.

[mp3] Blue Scholars | No Rest for the Weary
(thanks to tmwsiy* for this track!)

I also briefly chatted up Blueprint at the merch table. Seriously nice guy. He even put a card I gave him in his wallet. Can’t wait til he cleans it out and is like, “What the f*** is this?” (Tosses into trash.)

Pics aren’t all that great for a couple of reasons: a) We stayed back by the bar, so I was kinda far away; b) We stayed back by the bar, so I was kinda drunk. I know flash is annoying, but I had to use it ’cause I was far back. Anyway, some dude in Jesus sandals took umbrage with that: “You know, you can turn that off.” I later took a picture of him (with flash) because he irritated me. Maybe he’s reading this. Hi, Jesus Sandals Guy!

RJD2 rocks a trigger drumpad around his neck with “technology on his head.”

Blueprint and RJD2.

We like RJD2.

Jesus!! Sandals.
And just to prove that I’ll incriminate myself, here’s a photo that pretty much destroys any hopes I had of public office:

Hey, who’s the clown in the ironic T-shirt? Oh, it’s Royce!

Elsewhere …

Seattle station KEXP has a blog. Read it.

And a shout out to Jason, who works at Zia Records and I met last night. He didn’t even laugh when I bought Van Halen’s 1984 on vinyl.

hip-hop, interview

10 questions (via e-mail) with RJD2

4 Comments


Already, 2006 is shaping up as a prolific year for RJD2, the sound-collage king from Columbus, Ohio. He accompanied LA underground legend Aceyalone on Magnificent City and manned the decks for Soul Position’s Things Go Better With RJ and Al, his collaboration with Rhymesayers emcee Blueprint. This week saw the release of Magnificent Instrumentals.

Lest we forget, RJ’s solo work – Deadringer and Since We Last Spoke – has been hailed as “21st century soul.”

[mp3] Soul Position Keep it Hot for Daddy

RJ is in Tempe, Ariz., tonight with Blueprint and he was kind enough to answer 10 quick questions via e-mail in which he discusses “junk” records, this year’s projects and we discover he’s just like you and me – he likes (who else?) Sufjan Stevens:

1. It’s been a busy year for you with the Aceyalone and Soul Position projects. Have you had much time to think about or set out a blueprint (so to speak) for your next solo project?
RJ: Yea, im getting that thing going. i dont want to talk about it right now much, though, if thats ok. alot is up in the air.

2. How does your mind-set differ when you’re gathering samples and creating music for a collaborative project as opposed to your solo works (if at all)?
RJ: the things that i end up keeping for myself are usually things that have the potential to be developed into something bigger. i see the production work i do for other people as something that should have a different feel than my solo records.

3. When you do two projects like Magnificent City and Things Go Better with two different MCs do you tailor the production beats to each MC’s style? In other words, do you have the MC in mind when you’re making the music?
RJ: no. when im working with a rapper, i try to send them as much variety as possible, within the confines of something that could be rapped on. i have learned that sending a particular sound to people can leave out things they might want to work with.

4. Can you discuss similarities or differences in working with Aceyalone and Blueprint?
RJ: the new sp (Soul Position) album, to me, is a very stylized affair. i think it is mostly a soul/funk oriented record, sonically. the acey album is all over the place, in my eyes. acey wanted me to do whatever i wanted, and really trusted my vision for the record. blueprint has always been more hands on, but he’s also a producer, so that probably makes him more picky.

5. Let’s get a handle on your vinyl collection: How many LPs/45s would you say you own — and, as a follow-up, what’s your most prized or sentimental piece?
RJ: off the top of my head, i would have to say any of the columbus rock or soul records i have, or one of the few new things i have that sampled an rjd2 record.

6.When you go digging/shopping for vinyl, are you looking for albums that have potential in terms of samples or are you simply looking for good albums? (A side question: Where do you do a majority of your vinyl buying — thrift stores, garage sales?)
RJ: honestly, i havent been hyper-obsessed with records for the last two years or so, because my focus has moved over to gear, but in general, the challenge of sampling for me has always been to make something better, or make something good out of bad source material. so i have a lot of “junk” records, things you probably wouldnt want.

7. There seemed to be a phase for a few years where scratch-heavy “turntablism” was all the rage. With guys like yourself, Shadow, Z-Trip, Cut Chemist, etc., how do you see the art of DJing progressing?
RJ: i dont know. i guess it seems like there are a lot of different approaches to djing, producing, making electronic music, or hiphop, and they all seem to cross-pollinate every year or so. now, im just thinking in terms of music. i want to make something someday that will stand up next to “real” music, so im not just keeping my eyes on my peers, if you will.

8. In most reviews and stories, writers are quick to call your music “cut-and-paste.” That seems like a major oversimplifcation. Are you at all offended by that term?
RJ: no. i think that, or collage music, is an accurate term for the records i have done in the past. id like to think im moving more towards a more cohesive sound, but i think its accurate for my solo albums. really, any other kind of record is made very similarly-you cut the rhythm section, send the session down to another studio to get the strings done, the singer comes in two weeks later to record the vocals. my records are done just like that, except i end up pulling the source material from whatever i can find in my home.

9. The Brainfreeze project by Cut Chemist and Shadow seemed to spark interest in the original source material and artists they sampled. Is that an intended goal when you’re producing music, to perhaps uncover or reintroduce a long-lost artist/album to the public?
RJ: no. like i said before, one of my underlying goals is to not use good music as source material.

10. Finally, what artists, bands or musicians are inspiring your work — past and present?
RJ: right now, im into dungen, sufjan stevens, ELO, the teeth, dead sea.

RJD2’s catalog, including Magnificent City and Things Go Better, is available at eMusic.

Last night …

Saw John Vanderslice with Laura Veirs at Modified. John freaking Vanderslice. Played an hour and half and at least 20 songs, probably more. I won’t bore you with some full-blown concert review. I strongly recommend you see him as the chemistry with this band is unreal. Also, he’s selling John Vanderslice pillowcases. Seriously. (But do yourself a favor and spend the 12 bucks on a CD.)

If you didn’t see him on this tour (and there are only three dates left), maybe you should click here and download an entire live set that JV graciously provides on his Web site. And he did say that Phoenix (specifically Modified) was his favorite place to play in the country. Boo ya!

JV songs that zoomed to top of my rotation after last night:

  • Up Above the Sea: The keyboard/bass action is so menacing live.
  • Continuation: The opening few measures with that drum beat are begging to be sampled somewhere.
  • Time Travel is Lonely: Just listen. Dear lord.
hip-hop, samples

Cage samples Built to Spill: “Ballad of Worms”

5 Comments

Yesterday I was reading the excellent A.V. Club at The Onion, whose Random Rules is a regular feature with an artist who discusses shuffled songs on his/her iPod.

This week’s guest is Slug of Minnesota’s Atmosphere. Included among Slug’s wide-ranging shuffled stops (Tom Waits, Lifter Puller) was Built to Spill’s I Would Hurt a Fly. Slug tells us, “This is actually my favorite Built To Spill song ever, and it’s totally because of a rapper named Cage.” I like both artists but had no clue their paths ever crossed in the form of a hip-hop track.


Turns out, Cage (on El-P’s great Definitive Jux label) samples Hurt a Fly for a track called Ballad of Worms (2004, Eastern Conference: All Stars III) – which details, quite graphically at times, his sick girlfriend who is on her deathbed: “I tell her, keep her head up / Even though I gotta hold it up for her.”

In the hands of Cage, Doug Martsch’s lifted vocals (“I can’t get that sound you make out of my head … “) still depress but in a more macabre tone. The sampled strings and guitars sound even more haunting and desperate than in the original Built to Spill track.

A few points to be made here: For one, this is sampling at its best. Not so much in terms of creatively reworking the sampled source but in recognizing a mood in a lyric and giving it a different meaning in a new context.

Secondly, why aren’t we seeing more of this? That is, hip-hop artists sampling more current indie acts. The hurdle of clearing samples aside, this marriage of genres would go a long way to help squash whatever preconceived notions fans may have of either style. It’s a little more than intriguing that a respected underground MC is sampling an iconic indie-rock group. If you’re a Built to Spill fan, maybe you don’t run out and buy Cage’s albums, but he at least piques your interest. And we might safely assume that Cage had some working knowledge of Built to Spill’s catalog, meaning he’s probably a fan himself. At the very least, you have to respect that.

Cage | Ballad of Worms
Built to Spill | I Would Hurt a Fly

radio rips

Hard drive overload: Editors on KEXP

4 Comments


Inspired by the spring cleaning over at tmwsiy* and the warning from my Mac that I must delete files before it explodes, I’m determined to clear out some of these podcasts and things I’ve been stashing. Must … find … hard … drive … space.

First up is this session from Editors on KEXP while the Seattle station was at SXSW. I know what you’re thinking: Editors sound like Interpol … blah blah … like Joy Division … bloo bloo. I suppose it’s true. A couple years ago, that might have really ticked me off, and I probably would have written a band like Editors off before listening (indie-rock snobbery … don’t let it happen to you).

But, you know, who’s writing these rules? So they’re influenced by Interpol. Is that a bad thing? Probably not because Interpol is really damn good (trust me, people, you can’t find this kind of analysis just anywhere). Is it robbery or flattery? I’ll side with the latter. Anyway, I hear Editors put on a pretty superb live show.

My ears also perked up when the guys in the band excitedly referred to Elbow, one of my favorites, as an influence in their interview with KEXP. In fact, Editors recorded a B-side, Let Your Good Heart Lead You Home, under Elbow’s guidance (maybe you can find it here).

Editors, Live on KEXP from SXSW, 3/15/06:

1. Lights
2. Bullets
3. All Sparks
4. Munich
5. Fingers in the Factories

In mp3 blogs …

In sports …

contests, remix

The Magic Numbers picture disc winner

6 Comments

These contests are always tough because you guys come straight with great entries. But this winner was a cinch as soon as I read it. The question was what’s your favorite number and why? And Jeremy tugged on my hip-hop heartstrings with his answer: “3 because it is a magic number.”

Anyone who is familiar with the De La Soul catalog will know that The Magic Number is a tune off De La’s classic debut 3 Feet High and Rising. Although it might not have been his intention (though I’m guessing it was), Jeremy not only hit me off with one of my favorite groups, he also related it to the actual band, The Magic Numbers. Well done.


Gotta give props to my man Peter for his answer of 9, representative of WGN superstation and the Cubs.

So, Jeremy, get at me (somuchsilence@gmail.com) with your mailing address and you’ve got a Magic Numbers piece of vinyl on its way. Word.

Here’s some De La now, with special The Magic Number remixes in honor of the winner:

De La Soul | The Magic Number (Too Mad Mix)
De La Soul | The Magic Number (1-2-3 Mix)

hip-hop, radio rips

Soul Position on KEXP

3 Comments


Hey, you. Have you picked up Soul Position’s new LP Things Go Better With RJ and Al? No? Come on, now. You’re only missing one of the hottest collaborations – between Blueprint, one of the tightest MCs out there, and RJD2, producer/DJ du jour.

I posted on Blueprint awhile back, and if you’re sleepin’ on RJ, well … sheeeeiiit. I’m here to help. RJD2, a sample-digging composer in the mold of DJ Shadow, already laid down the goodness on this year’s Magnificent City with Aceyalone.

Check this set from KEXP that aired Wednesday, and you’ll get a good taste of what Soul Position is about: good-time beats with rhymes that walk the line of humor and braggadocio. Who else is gonna drop a song about his cellphone minutes?

If you like it, pick up Things Go Better at eMusic. And tune for a related interview next week, when Soul Position visits Tempe on May 10.

Soul Position, live on KEXP, 5/3/06:

1. Unlimited
2. The Extra Mile
3. I Need My Minutes
4. Priceless

general

New Dios (Malos) track

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The great Dios (Malos) is in town tonight with Starlight Mints and the Octopus Project. Yes, it’s a great lineup and it all happens tonight at Modified. Small problem: I got a late in on tickets to see the Cubs at Diamondbacks. Greg Maddux (5-0) hurling for the Cubbies. I’m so there. Hopefully, I can catch Dios and/or Starlight Mints afterward if Maddux makes quick work of D-Backs, despite Chris’ pleas that I must see the Octopus Project.

Hey, Cubs only come to Phx twice this year – tonight and Thursday, and I’m going to both.

But you don’t think I’ll leave you empty-handed, do you? I’ve got a new Dios track from their just-released iTunes-only EP (click it, foo’). Lead singer Joel explains that the EP is a four-track project, which is how Dios originally was conceived.

One track, I Feel Fatt, is, according to Joel, “a concept song which im curious to see wholl figure it out first.” Cool. But I already love Hermit, which epitomizes that Dios sound – all poppy with those random heavy breaths used as instruments. Dig it.

Dios (Malos) | Hermit
(For a very limited time.)

New mp3 blog alert!:

There’s another Kevin out there (not to be confused with The Kevins). Check out Pop Zeus. For a while, Kevin was sending out an mp3 of the week e-mail to friends and such. I enjoyed it so much, and I’m glad to see he’s gone global. I highly recommend you check out his site for insightful and sometimes nostalgic musings.

Especially tune into his post on Don West, whom you’ll recognize if you used to stay up late and watch the home shopping network with this insane dude screaming at you about mint-condition rookie baseball cards. There are mp3s with Don West’s throaty pleas for your money (“You must … order … more … than … one!”) over some sweet beats. This has to be one of the Posts of the Year.

general

The Helio Sequence: “Everyone Knows Everyone”

6 Comments


Rare are the times living in Phoenix when one must choose between two great shows on the same night. I am faced with such a dilemma on May 10, when the Helio Sequence and Crystal Skulls play Modified, while Soul Position, Blue Scholars and One Be Lo rock the Clubhouse in Tempe. Oh, decisions. This must be what it feels like on a nightly basis in LA or New York.

Anyway, as a big RJD2 fan, I’ve already opted for the Soul Position set, and I’m sure I won’t be disappointed. That said, the Helio Sequence has captured my attention of late, thanks to 3Hive, which recently posted on the Sub Pop duo.

This is far from breaking news: The group’s last album, Love and Distance, came out in 2004. Could I possibly be behind the curve any more? No matter. Everyone Knows Everyone is such a fabulous song, full of keyboard quirks and loose rhythms.

Even more appealing to me, though, are the song’s lyrics. I’m sure I’m not the only person who has fleeting thoughts of taking off, leaving … starting fresh somewhere else. I’m oddly drawn to songs dealing with that topic – they’re my accomplices when I entertain those fancy-free notions of jetting.

Just the title of Everyone Knows Everyone tells you something; when everyone knows everyone, life becomes a little more cramped, your personal business a little more revealed. Everyone knows everyone and everyone talks about everyone. I’ve done it. We all have. It makes me want to pick up and go.

“The city where I live
The faces in the crowd
It all just makes me stop to think
This is what I’ve found”

The idea of fleeing but never realizing it is both liberating and deflating. What makes us stay where we are? Guilt? Loyalty? Responsibility? I met a guy at a wedding on Saturday who said he lives in Costa Rica. I asked, “What do you do in Costa Rica?” His reply: “Nothing.” Oh, the escapist fantasies that ran through my head after talking to him.

“There’s no escaping
There’s nothing to escape
For no good reason
I think I’m gonna stay”

I have a few favorite songs about all of this, but I’m curious if anyone else out there has some.

The Helio Sequence | Everyone Knows Everyone

radio rips

Clogs on WOXY

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Credit: Alec Hanley Bemis/Brassland.org
This past weekend was busy: a wedding Friday in Tucson and one back here in Phoenix on Saturday. But the good news is my wife’s sister, June, delivered their first child (a boy) on Sunday, which also happens to be the date of our anniversary and Annie and June’s dad’s birthday. April 30 is a great day.

Anyway, with the hectic (ahem, hungover) pace of the weekend, I was more than happy to see a WOXY.com Lounge Acts performance from Clogs pop into my subscription update to help soothe my nerves. My affinity for the National has drawn me to Clogs, whose members include National guitarist Bryce Dessner.

The sound of the group’s classical-trained musicians, all haunting and absorbing, has drawn comparisons to the Rachel’s and Sigur Ros. It’s multi-instrumental chamber music, with an emphasis on multi: We’re talking violins, ukeleles and bassoons here.

Consider it a serene and engaging departure from the usual indie-rock runaround.

Clogs, WOXY.com Lounge Acts, 4/28/06:

1. Raise the Flag
2. 235
3. Bed & Rest
4. Voisons
5. Lantern

The Clogs’ catalog, including their new release Lantern, is available at eMusic.

Support WOXY.
Subscribe to WOXY Lounge Acts podcast (opens iTunes).