The D.C.-area outfit correctly describe its latest as "a collection of studies on intersections." Each track features some sublime new weave of styles, from Afrobeat-soul blends to brews of classical and hip-hop. The common denominator is a lush and enveloping jazz.
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Somewhere out there, a member of the Aussie-based Presets is sulking, wondering why another of their countrymen had to come along and steal away all the shine. Midnight Juggernauts are straight out of Melbourne, and their nu-disco-meets-indie flavor recalls something like a mashing of Giorgio Moroder, Air, and Phoenix. Way to go, mates.
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(Credit: Roc-a-fella Records)With sales for digital singles outpacing CD sales, it's hard to imagine an artist overlooking any avenue of digital distribution and revenue. Yet with the exception of a handful of tracks, American rap icon Jay-Z has resisted releasing his 100-song catalog as ringtones--until last week. That's when most of the remaining tracks streamed into the digital media marketplace. Most. Through August, ten of the artist's smash singles have been earmarked for only one site.
Starting Monday, those hidden hits, including 'Can I Get A', 'IZZO (H.O.V.A.)', and 'Roc Boys (And The Winner Is)', became exclusively available on Thumbplay.com. Thumbplay, a mobile content company with an estimated worth of $400 million, now carries 101 prepackaged Jay-Z ringtones, including the coveted 10 (see the exclusive titles below.)
But will ringtones continue to sell in a hobbled economy? Mitch Rotter, Thumbplay's Vice President of Content Acquisition & Merchandising, thinks they will. Ringtones are about social expression, he said in an interview. To a youth demographic, "they're a fashion accessory," and therefore a worthy buy for teens proving their cool to peers within earshot.
Thumbplay's Jay-Z titles:
1-900-Hustler, The Dynasty: Roc La Familia (2000)
-Can I Get A, Vol. 2: Hard Knock Life (1998)
-Encore, The Black Album (2003)
-Excuse Me Miss, The Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse (2002)
-Girls, Girls, Girls, The Blueprint (2001)
-Heart Of The City (Ain't No Love), The Blueprint (2001)
-IZZO (H.O.V.A.), ... Read more
They've got four members instead of two, and Brooklyn's Girlfriends can feel a lot like a double-wide Beach House. Both bands lead with gauzy dream-pop vocals and hypnotic hooks, but the Jealous ones fill things out with heavier percussion and the stray amp-ruining riff.
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We dare you to sit still while listening to Antibalas--it's impossible. The 13-member Afrobeat orchestra ignites the ground beneath your feet with an array of lively rhythms, from jazz to traditional African. The "bulletproof" bastion of beats, melodies, and chants supplied by these talented musicians is keeping the empowering musical spirit of the late Fela Kuti alive and well.
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For those who only know Amy Ray as half of the Indigo Girls, her venture into rock 'n' roll territory as a solo artist might come as a surprise. With crunchy guitars and a solid backbeat, Ray showcases a more playful side of her musical personality.
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Yelle says she sings in "80's French"--which sounds kind of confusing until you hear her punky electro tracks that remind us of Stereo Totale and Electrocute. Fronting a fashiony, stylish movement that embraces the DIY aesthetics of punk and seeks to move the dance floor, Yelle's sound begs to be added to your party playlist.
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I had a charter family membership Seattle's Experience Music Project or EMP, which opened in 2000. But after a couple years, I gave it up. The exhibits didn't change enough to warrant a lot of repeat visits, our periodic out-of-town guests had all been at least once, and the promise of early alerts about live shows at the museum never seemed to come through. (The one show I really wanted to see, the Television reunion in 2001, was sold out before I was ever informed about it.)
With a teenaged niece in town and my daughter just getting old enough to enjoy the museum experience, we decided to rejoin yesterday. After facing a few years of low attendance, the museum has made a lot of positive changes, like lowering prices for memberships and daily passes and offering free admission on one evening per month.
As part of this revamp, they killed MEG. Also known as the Museum Experience Guide, MEG was a portable device about the size of a portable CD player with a laser scanner, headphones, and an LCD screen. Visitors would point the scanner at a point on the wall and hear information about the exhibit and maybe some relevant music--for example, famous guitarists like Vernon Reid shredding one of the museum's rare guitars. Nobody loved MEG: they were awkward to carry and hard to figure out, and I always ended up putting mine down ... Read more
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An intriguing flip-flop happens in the Seattle bard's latest. If his previous material was whisper-close yet emotionally distant, his newest is rugged and available. From its aching alt-country melodies to its American-summer lyrics, "Caught in the Trees" can recall Jeff Tweedy.
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I had the opportunity to see Wynton Marsalis perform with the 15-piece Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra last night in Seattle, and it was an absolutely stellar performance, with great song selection (Marsalis's own "The Holy Ghost" was a standout) and some of the most incredible technical playing I've ever heard--they did Duke Ellington's "Braggin' in Brass," which contains a trombone part in which each player plays a note or two in sequence, together creating this fast complicated line. (Listen here--that part starts around the -2:06 mark.) I've heard from some jazz fans that Wynton's a little too stiff or formal for their tastes, but that wasn't my experience at all--he even walked back on stage for an impromptu second encore vamp with only the piano, bass, and drums backing him up.
I would have been happy to buy a recording of last night's performance by Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra (shown here).
(Credit: Wynton Marsalis Web site)Jazz performances lend themselves to live recordings--setlists change nightly (Marsalis announces his setlist from the stage as the show goes on) and improvisation is the rule rather than a rarity. I would have been happy to buy a recording of this show or last month's Return to Forever performance. But so far, I don't see jazz musicians embracing the practice of recording their shows and selling them--something that's become pretty common with jam bands like ... Read more
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