Thursday, December 27, 2012

2012 Bonus Tracks

A few more tracks we enjoyed this year.

Nicolas Jaar - With Just One Glance You (feat. Scout LaRue)

Devo:  This is Demi/Bruce's daughter singing.  Could have killed it for me, except that she's actually good and sultry.



Van Stee - We Are

Ding:   Really dig this band outa Minneapolis, hope they get too big for their snow pants.



Todd Terje - Inspector Norse

Kowieski:  With so much talk of the bro-step movement in the blogosphere (some of you should embrace this and rebrand yourself), I think this is a good counter-balance to all the super heavy-bass/WUB WUB WUB WUB/Optimus-Prime-fucking-a-crane music.



The Shoes - Time to Dance

FreyDon:  Only watch this video if you think you would like to see Jake Gyllenhaal murdering people with a fencing sword.



Escort - Cocaine Blues

Devo: Hey folks, meet Escort, the band that might get you laid in early 2012.



Rebecca & Fiona - Dance

Tatarsky:  Late night music.  These broads know how to party. 



Tuesday, December 25, 2012

The Prig's Worst of 2012 List

Merry Christmas.

#5 Kendrick Lamar: Good Kid M.A.A.D City

What about this guy matters?  Just cuz he gets pseudo weird on a few tracks, all of a sudden this is some Outkast shit?  Fuck that.  This is a mediocre album from a mediocre rapper.  Dre killed him on his own track.  He actually put Drake on one of his tracks, which no one from Compton should ever do.



#4 Alt-J: An Awesome Wave

Shitty singing? Check. Is the "band" a bunch of nerds? Check.  Repetitive "minimalist" tones that only get "interesting" when the computer noises start?  Check. Matilda is grating. Their song MS practically gave me MS.  4 of the 13 tracks were an "Intro" or an "Interlude" - so they are fucking lazy too.



#3 Grimes: Visions

Grimes is what makes me hate contemporary music and internet culture.  Knowing little about anything, she uses everyone else's taste to "create" her own.  She says things like "One day, I was listening to music and it suddenly made sense to me how it was constructed."  This is a girl using computers to disguise her voice and her lack of any musical talent.  All tracks sound the same so none jumped out.



#2 The Xx: Coexist

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.  Sorry about that - just thinking about this shit album put me to sleep. The best words to describe this album are as follows, and I quote, "stink, stank, stunk."  Special hat tip to Grantland writer Amos Barshad, who made the daring move of writing, ""Shelter" is catchy as a motherfucker." I disagree Amos, "Shelter" is mostly just some broad mouth breathing into a microphone, while someone else half asses the guitar.



#1A Macklemore & Lewis: The Heist

Someone actually wanted mold themselves in the model of LFO?  Frankly, I'd prefer "Summer Girls" to this mess of cliches and overall theft of a culture.  I've said it before about other white-washed hip hop culture thieves - luckily none are ever remembered, which is appropriate given all the talk about this being "his moment."  His song about shoes especially touched my cold heart - the Nike product placement probably helped fill his wallet.  His terrible posturing and posing on that tiny desk show deserves mention as well.



#1B Every shitty electro tune that was pumped out by no talent clowns for a bunch of people on drugs (no offense meant to drugs).  I won't even bother to name them because that would insinuate that they actually have characteristics that separate one from another.



Folks that mattered to the Prig this year - Danny Brown, King Tuff, The Moons, Gun Club Cemetery, Frank Ocean, Freddie Gibbs, certain Beach House tracks and some Azealia Banks.

- The Prig

Friday, November 23, 2012

Oct/Nov wrap-up

A few tracks we enjoyed in October Novemeber 2012.

Alt-J - Tessellate

TheMonkeysEyebrows:  I'm hooked.



Cat Power - Ruin

Tatarsky:  Hat tip to Pete Laird for playing the girly shit in our apt.  Love it when one of these hits bro!



Justice - New Lands (A-Trak Remix)

Dinger:  ACL update, A-Trak just dropped this Justice remix.  Nasty.



Sky Ferreira - Everything is Embarassing

Adrien Brody:  Put on your skinny jeans and two-step to this tonight.



Miles Fisher - This Must Be the Place

Shorty:  Don't just stare at this.

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

September wrap-up

A few tracks we enjoyed in September 2012.

Atoms for Peace - Default

macarella:  Reminds me of the Eraser album Yorke put out a few years back.  Album should be out sometime in the next 10 months, or years. 



Dinosaur Jr - Watch the Corners

Hollering:  If you want a middle school grunge boner, check this song out.  Braj fucking wails at the end. 



The Underachievers - Herb Shuttles 

Kowieski:  I like drug rap, and drugs.



Southern Shores - Grand Comore

Devo:  We Are Hunted intro'd me to this song -- prettay, prettay solid.  They must have an LP brewing.



Yeasayer - Fingers Never Bleed

MeatMD:  New Yeasayer went right under my radar but it's kind of amazing.  Somehow moodier than their other albums and they definitely amped up the synth pop element, which is a highly desirable element for me according to pandora.


Monday, September 3, 2012

August wrap-up

A few tracks we enjoyed in August 2012.

Viceroy - Chase Us Around

TheMonkeysEyebrows:  I like to imagine myself as a teenage girl driving my convertible to the shore with my friends while listening to this.



Bahamas - Caught Me Thinking

Maletich:   Like a cross between M Ward and MMJ.



Conner Youngblood - The Warpath

Devo:  I don't really know who this guy is but it sounds like a likable Citizen Cope song done for the Kill Bill Vol. 2 soundtrack.



Tiger Love - Summer Rain

Kramer:  You thought it was over, it's not.



Azealia Banks - Liquorice

Marteen:  judgment free zone i'm jerking off to azealia riding that horse later tonight.


Thursday, August 9, 2012

July wrap-up

A few tracks we enjoyed in July 2012.

Joey Bada$$ - Waves

Adrien Brody:  If you put a lot of hours playing Midnight Marauders on repeat (10 years after its release like I did)...



Teen Daze - The Future

Walla:  Chillaxation. I feel like Scrooge McDuck wandering the Moon level in DuckTales for NES.



Gotye - Smoke and Mirrors

Tatarsky:  So I listened to the rest of Gotye's album for the first time today.



Tame Impala - Elephants

Devo:   I don't know if it hits the heights but it sounds like it came directly from the Blow soundtrack.



Bagpipe Straw Drummer Guy - Self-titled

Kowieski:  Thank you.



Tuesday, July 3, 2012

June wrap-up

A few tracks we enjoyed in June 2012.

Summer Heart - I Wanna Go

Devo:  I almost didn't post this because it was a letdown once the "singing" started after how good the lead-in sounded.  Then I listened to it 4 straight times anyway.



Zac Brown Band - The Wind

FreyDon:  This post will get some sneers, but fuck that noise.  Poppy bluegrass just in time for outdoor beer drinking season.



Liars - Brats

Ding:  Not a Carly Rae Jensen cover.



Yeasayer - Longevity

Tatarsky:  Makes me think of that song in Ghostbusters where the city official lets all the ghosts out.  That song is real tight.



BONUS:  That song in Ghostbusters is a remix of Mick Smiley, Magic.  Real tight.

Saturday, June 2, 2012

May wrap-up

A few tracks we enjoyed in May 2012.

The Vliets - Elephant

Adrien Brody:   "Like the Flaming Lips on a Brian Wilson trip..."  I recommend taking a moment and listening to this if you're so inclined.



Pretty Lights - You Get High

FreyDon:  Song and video are fucking tight. Not much else to say here...



Zeus - Stop the Train

Tatarsky:  Retro-rock phenomenon has been a little played out lately -- but who doesn't like the Beatles, Turtles, Byrds, maybe even the Animals...



St. Lucia - Before the Dive

Laird:  Don't listen to this at work unless you're ready to start dancing on a table and then throw your computer out a window.



Torche - Reverse Inverted

Carl:  This new album is sludgy goodness.  Sounds like Superunknown-era Soundgarden.

Thursday, May 3, 2012

April wrap-up

A few tracks we enjoyed in April 2012.

Chromatics - Kill For Love

Devo:  Pfork just creamed all over this and did so in appealing enough fashion that I am intrigued.



Lotus Plaza - Monoliths

Kowieski:  Speaking of awful Pitchfork sentences, look at this shit from the album review:

"Pundt embodies a wakeful, meditative state associated with various forms of transit: your physical being stays relatively still while being in motion, a symbiosis between human and mechanical effort. I can't help but think of each song here as having some sort of vehicular spirit animal, so to speak."

Suck my dick.



Sweatshop Union - Bill Murray

whipptsONwkdayz:   I think you all will enjoy this freshness.



RxGibbs - Futures

Devo:  Caught a track on KEXP in Seattle by RxGibbs -- great if you dig Tycho or Washed Out and the similarly dreamy, beach synths that go along with it.



Amadou & Mariam - Africa mon afrique (feat. Bertrand Cantat)

Dinger:  What I didn't know is these cats met each other in a school for the blind in Mali and then eloped.  Sort of makes me want to check a show out...

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

March wrap-up

A few tracks we enjoyed in March 2012.

NAS - The Don

The Prig:  NAS coming in real hot.  F Clams Casino, ASAP, Childish Gambino, Tyler and Steve Harvey.



Electric Guest - This Head I Hold

Meat, M.D.:  The weather improves 10 degrees every time I listen to that song.



Lana Del Rey - Blue Jeans (RAC Remix) 

Adrien Brody:  Morning, Donalds.  Another great RAC remix to start your day.


Orbital - New France

huntness:  I gravitate toward anything with a puppet, muppet, or stuffed animal in it.


Dubstep Violin?

Dubstep violin.



Tanlines - Brothers

Devo:   If Cut Copy and Washed Out were DJs at a party on the beach in the Caribbean...  I'd stick with Tanlines

Welsch:   Tropical and ambient.  Excellent LP to welcome summer.


Friday, March 16, 2012

Coachella - The Undercard Part II

A few more of the small font bands at Coachella.

The Growlers - What it is

Woozy lo-fi surf rock.  Would play well in film student's homage to Tarantino.



Kendrick Lamar - A.D.H.D

Black Hippy > Asap Mob > Odd Future?



Thundercat - Daylight

Experimental rock-jazz fusion, on the jammier side for Coachella.  And this dude played in Suicidal Tendencies?  Nice.



Wednesday, February 29, 2012

February wrap-up

A look back at a few of the tracks we enjoyed this month:

BIG K.R.I.T. - Boobie Miles

FreyDon:  I would have posted this no matter how I felt about the song because of the title, but it's actually pretty dope.



Gary Clarke Jr. - Don't Owe You a Thang

Adrien Brody:  God damn is GCJ incredible.



Jacques Greene ft Ango - Untitled

Tatarsky:  Fans of the Weeknd -- holler at your boy Jacques Greene.  Here's some fun trivia, he's the geeky guy in Azealia's 212 video.



Lambchop - Gone Tomorrow

Devo:  This is a beautifully amazing song.  Now I realize why I am seeing this name everywhere.



Tennis - Petition

Adrien Brody:  new Tennis album drops February 14, just in time for the honey boo boo child in your life.  Close your eyes and this is an almost straight Feist rip, but enjoyable when played multiple times in a row.



Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Happy valentine's day

So the Grammys happened this weekend.  One notable winner was Bon Iver, who took the prize for Best New Artist just 4 short years after their critically acclaimed debut.*  But who does Justin Vernon think should have won the award?  Polica, an emerging indie band from Minneapolis.  In his words, "They're the best band I've ever heard."  Strong praise.
  

First album came out in December and they're touring now -- check em out.

* Other previous winners include Amy Winehouse in 2008 (five years after her '03 debut), Lauryn Hill in 1999 (three years after the Fugees won a Grammy for the Score....), and Milli Vanilli.

Sunday, February 12, 2012

TOURIST

I'll shuffle through track after mediocre track for a slow jam like this.  Currently starting to trend on all the indie rock blogs, including the estimable PFOS, Brighton producer/DJ Will Phillips, f.k.a. Little Loud, is now working under the moniker Tourist.  The Tourist E.P. is set to be released on March 12, 2012.

"Placid Acid" is below and if you click on the link you will not be disappointed.




Earl Sweatshirt is back.

After nearly two years in exile (apparently spending time at a New Zealand correctional facility and/or banished to Samoa on Mom's orders), Earl Sweatshirt is back:

Earl Sweatshirt - Home (Prod. by James Pants)

What a don...


Sunday, January 29, 2012

Coachella - The Undercard

In this series, we get to know a few of the small font bands at Coachella this year.

The Sheepdogs
Some of you may remember Rolling Stone did a contest last summer where fans could vote to put an indie band on the cover -- well, the Sheepdogs won that contest.  Classic rock revival band from Canada, have a sound somewhere between the Guess Who and the Allman Bros (with just a hint of Bob Weir).  Love it.



Other Lives
Melodic indie rock out of Oklahoma, been around for a few years, supported Bon Iver for a few shows on the last tour.  Kind of a distant, sweeping sound -- almost reminds me of the moody blues at times?  (in the good way)



Wild Beasts
Cool name.  Apparently have a bigger following in the UK.  Hard to say why these guys don't annoy me, but they don't.  The songs can be hypnotic, complex at times, good replay value.  Voices sound a little goofy, but I respect the range.




More to come...

Friday, January 20, 2012

The sophomore trump

One of the more highly anticipated albums of 2012 for the PFOS crew is Miike Snow's second album, set to drop in March.  A few singles are already making the rounds -- e.g., Black Tin Box (the best so far). 

But it's tough to follow up a strong debut.  The sophomore slump, aka MGMTing, is well documented.  It's probably not fair -- maybe the second album isn't all that bad, but just can't meet impossible expectations (a la Foster the People in 2014).  I fear this may happen here to our friends from Sweden.  They'd need to write a song that cures cancer and puts a $5 bill in my pocket every listen if they wanted to top Cult Logic, and that's a high bar. 

They'd also be in rare company if they pulled it off.  Which bands -- in the last 20 years let's say -- have actually met (or exceeded) high expectations with their follow up?  It needs to be a strong debut -- Nirvana doesn't count because no one knew about Bleach until MTV started playing Teen Spirit two dozen times a day.  (Disclaimer:  I was 7 years old.  Maybe *some* people knew about Bleach.)

Not everyone, but here's a few:

Foo Fighters - The Colour and the Shape (1997) 
When Grohl started his side project in 94, he wasn't going to catch anyone off guard.  Foo Fighters went platinum six months after its release.  But it was his follow up album in 97 that established the band with its own legacy-in-waiting, as more than a re-hashed Nirvana.  It's still the band's biggest seller, with (probably) the band's best known song.



Kanye West - Late Registration (2005)
Some might call this a stretch, because College Dropout was big -- it debuted #2 on the US charts, has a few of his most well-known singles, Rolling Stone ranked it the #10 album of the 2000s (who gives a shit, I know).  But Late Registration was just as big -- it debuted #1, went platinum in two weeks, has his most popular single to date.  More importantly though, it cemented this guy as a hip hop icon.  Other rappers had shined real bright in a debut only to fade after (e.g., Warren G), but this album proved Kanye wasn't going to be one of them.  In the words of Rob Sheffield (who gives a shit, I know), "Late Registration is so expansive it makes the debut sound like a rough draft."  By not dropping off even a little bit, Kanye trumped his debut.



Adele - 21 (2011)
Probably the only one here that's beyond reasonable debate.  Maybe some purists out there prefer her first album, but I doubt anyone thinks it was a greater overall achievement.  19 was generally successful and well received by critics, but 21 made Adele a household name and feels like one of those pop-ish albums that will still be relevant in 15 or 20 years.  And just like with the Foo Fighters and Kanye, her second album leaves the impression she still has a lot more to come.



A few others:
Pearl Jam - Vs. -- most people I know prefer Ten, but Vs. solidified the band as a rock powerhouse.
Oasis - (What's the Story) Morning Glory? -- maybe not for the snobs, but definitely for the world's karaoke bars.
Dave Matthews Band - Crash -- seven million people can't be wrong.
Daft Punk - Discovery -- tastes will differ, but hard to say this didn't at least meet high expectations.
Bon Iver - Bon Iver / Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues -- definitely for the snobs, not so much for the world's karaoke bars. 

I hope, for the world's sake, Miike can follow in this tradition.  One more for the road:

Thursday, January 12, 2012

2011: A Retrospective

A year in music is impossible to label, the sheer volume of material does not lend itself to a neat and tidy summary. One's personal musical experience throughout a year however, can be a known quantity.  In light of this, I'd have to say that, for me, 2011 was the year of the female solo artist.  Here's why (some of these are blog repeats):



Lykke Li has been making waves in the states for a while now, but she's only just begun to get the recognition she deserves.



Feist is well known for her song 1,2,3,4 after it was featured in an Apple ad. While it may have dented her indy cred, it certainly didn't stop her from writing great music.




While this song from Mountain Man was released in '09, they spent 2011 touring with Feist as her backing vocals, and they've got some of the best harmonies I've ever heard.



St. Vincent is a former member of The Polyphonic Spree (whom I strongly recommend).  This year saw the release of her most successful album to date.




I don't know much about Rachel Yamagata; I just think this song is catchy.  Hey man, I don't get paid for this, google it yourself.




Ok, shit's about to get real.  I can't stop listening to this song.  If you don't at least nod your head, there's something wrong with you.  Also, if you don't do a double take at some of the lyrics, you aren't paying attention.  She's got one of the most unusual deliveries I've ever heard.  It's worth mentioning that I don't know shit about rap (if that's the bin this would go in).



It's gotten a lot of coverage, and Lana Del Rey has been taking flack for her image, but the bottom line is that this is a great song with a lot of soul.
There are a few more that come to mind, but to be honest I'd be surprised if anyone made it through all of these. Am I right guys? Guys??

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Dramatic, Asiatic & Not Like Many...

Hip hop at its finest.  I watched a hipster lose her shit this morning at a restaurant when this song came on, but you can't deny the power of Big Daddy Kane. 

Thursday, January 5, 2012

What is a Rock Star?

The Prig talks about "being a rock star" a lot. But what does that really mean? Quite simply, it means you are giving the public something it yearns for (outside of the music). It's why Badfinger never hit the big time even though Paul McCartney wrote songs for them. It is why Pearl Jam helped define a scene and Mudhoney stayed relatively unknown. It's why people actually think Jim Morrison had talent.

Rock Stardom is a fickle but powerful thing.

But what makes a rock star? Here is a short list of qualifications that I look for. Kindly apply these metrics when you are listening / watching your new favorite indie buzz band and judge (harshly) accordingly.

1) The Look. First and foremost, the band / lead has to have "The Look." There are many forms of the Look: really good looking (Mick Jagger, Blondie), weird looking (Robert Smith, Siouxsie Sioux), bad looking (Iggy Pop, Peaches), ridiculous looking (George Clinton), insane looking (Axl Rose). Whatever it is, it has got to have something. Liam Gallagher's hair spawned like a hundred (albeit mostly shitty) bands - the power of the The Look is undeniable. Without the look, you probably won't last.

Taking your band picture with the Hipstamatic app on your iphone probably won't work.

2) Drugs. Doesn't always apply (see Ian MacKaye), but usually is part of it. Heroin can make and break a band. Drugs can be the difference between this:



and this:



Need I say more?

3) Creativity of Origin. You don't need to be the first mover, but you need to be a creative driver in a scene. The Beatles creating Britpop out of working class Liverpool. R.E.M. out of the indie rock scene of Athens, Georgia. Pearl Jam and Nirvana out of Seattle grunge. The Jam out of the Mod scene. Even Ariel Pink has a story - the guy was a shut who made 500 songs in his house before people took notice.

You're a middle class kid making "beats" on your Mac? Sorry man, not going to work for me.

4) Having Something to Say. The lyrics / music have to resonate with a mass of people. Being a small mass (30 Seconds to Mars) or a large one (Lady Gaga) - having something to say goes a long way to making a rock star.

The National seem to make girls wet just by singing about watching TV. I don't get it, but obviously they're saying something.

5) Swagger. Tough to measure, but absolutely necessary. In a room full of bands, is your band the coolest? It should be. Even to the point of idiocy, I need my rock star to believe that his / her band is the center of the universe. I need my rock star to believe his concert is the highlight of the listener's year.

Without swagger - could we ever have had this?!



All aspiring Rock Stars, please see the above and act accordingly. The Prig doesn't make the rules, he just recognizes them and acts accordingly. So should you.