Bon Iver’s beginnings are pitch-perfect mythology for the soul of the singer songwriter. Three months of solitude in the woods of Wisconsin, armed with little more than angst and analog recording equipment. And yes, there was a beard involved.
Well, it turns out that prior to the cabin and the rap cameos and the Grammy, Justin Vernon was in a band with two other people who were never heard from since… until now.
One of these band mates, Chris Porterfield, has now emerged as Field Report. Though his debut album has yet to be released, a few unmastered tracks have trickled out.
A promising foray into well-crafted folk. Grab it now before Kanye does.
Amidst the bass wobbles and synth-pop that so dominates the modern music landscape, it’s easy to think of jazz as a musical dialect quickly receding into the realm of history. Jazz is the musical equivalent of a photo album that you carefully take it off the shelf once or twice a year to enjoy it with a sense of nostalgic reverence. No self-respecting music fan will ever claim to dislike jazz; the issue is that few music fans under the age of 50 ever think about jazz. Or so you would think.
And then a bunch of kids get together and release a series of jazz covers that take the internet by storm. With a brash flourish, they stake out these songs not just as their own but of their generation:
“No one above the age of 21 was involved in the making of this album, it was created by a bunch of kids. This album was recorded in one 10 hour session with no song having more than two takes, it was mixed and mastered completely by ourselves. Thanks to our friends, family, loved ones and anyone who fucks with us.”
Just in time, here’s some of the best that 2011 has to offer for an upbeat end of the year.
Can a song be played eight times in a row at a concert without starting a riot? If the song is this good, it can. Here’s a slight re-mix featuring a take from T.I. before he finds a way to end up back in jail.
Whether on her own albums or others, pretty much everything Rihanna touched this past year turned to gold. Here’s a Xaphoon Jones remix that gives a new touch of dancehall to one of her hits.
Despite a clever marketing campaign that seemed to become the stuff of case studies, nobody really seemed to care that The Beastie Boys were back. But even if only for that genius video, this track deserves a place on the list.
Well, there you have it. Thank you all for reading: this really was a break out year for the blog. I hope you all have a wonderful New Year’s, and I look forward to typing your ear off about dozens of songs you simply must hear in the new year.
Apparently, Kanye and HALO have become standard fare amongst the grammar school set. For many parents, this forces a musical Sophie’s choice: either let your young kids loose into a lyrical free-for-all, or censor them into corner of musical lameness.
Fortunately, this choice is unnecessary. Just in time for my sister-in-law’s long car trip with her family, here’s a mini-mix tape that proves that cultural currency needn’t come with an R rating.
For years, R&B seemed stuck in the rut of wan warblers and wedding dancers. But, over the past few months, artists such as Frank Ocean and The Weeknd have put the genre back on the forefront of creative accomplishment and commercial heat.
The most recent example of this resurgence comes from a side project dubbed “Cocaine 80s.” Helmed by super-producer No I.D. (mentor to Kanye West), this project has come out of nowhere to own the interwebs over the past few weeks.
Here are two tracks from the collaboration that will work their way right into repeat play.
As the economy splutters and winter temps linger, there’s something defiantly glorious about unabashedly glam pop music. Much as Kanye did in his Twisted Fantasy, Patrick Wolf spares no musical exaggeration with “The City.”
Who knew that the Beastie Boys attended the Kanye West school of new media marketing? Following on the heels of yesterday’s leaked track, we now have a trailer for what seems to be the Beastie’s gonzo take on a Runaway-esque short film. Reflecting their different artistic sensibilities, Kanye had crazy artistic flourishes including a woman/swan and a paper mache Michael Jackson, and the Beastie Boys have a collection of comedians including Will Ferrell, Seth Rogen, Danny McBride, John C. Reilly, Jack Black, Elijah Wood, and lot of other famous people.
This film has some surprisingly dystopic touches, but also seems to be hilarious in a borderline nonsensical sort of way. To wit: “sense is something you can’t even make sense of until you’ve been to the future and spent time there.”
As the old music industry melts down even for superstars, it’s interesting to see how quickly artists are picking up each other’s tactics. What’s next? B.E.A.S.T.I.E. music Thursday’s?
