Tuesday, June 30, 2009

New Spoon single, reminder of Austin group's love for Low

SPOON: GOT NUFFIN
NEW SINGLE OUT JUNE 30
SPOONX3 July 9, 10 & 11 at Stubbs Amphitheater


On Tuesday, June 30th, SPOON will debut its first newly recorded material since 2007's universally acclaimed Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga: Merge Records will release the three-song "Got Nuffin" single on CD and digital download beginning June 30, with 12" vinyl version following in July, exact date TBD.

"Got Nuffin" was recorded by Nicolas Vernhes at Rare Book Room. B-sides "Tweakers" and "Stroke Their Brains" were recorded by SPOON.

As previously announced SPOON will return to its birthplace to commandeer Austin's Stubbs Amphitheater July 9, 10 and 11 for SPOONX3, which will feature the live debut of new material from the band's forthcoming album as well as different special guests nightly, all handpicked by SPOON.

The lineup for the shows at Stubbs is as follows:

July 9 - SPOON, Quasi, Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears
July 10 - SPOON, Low, Dale Watson
July 11 - SPOON, Atlas Sound, the Strange Boys

For further information, check www.Spoontheband.com

~Information courtesy Nasty Little Man

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

New Beastie Boys album announced + 'Hello Nasty' reissued!

BEASTIE BOYS
HOT SAUCE COMMITTEE PART 1 OUT SEPTEMBER 15
ILL COMMUNICATION & HELLO NASTY TO COMPLETE DELUXE REISSUE SERIES
INTIMATE AUGUST 6 CHICAGO SHOW TO PRECEDE LOLLAPALOOZA APPEARANCE
SEPTEMBER 24 HOLLYWOOD BOWL SHOW SOLD OUT
Summer Festival Domination Begun With Bonnaroo To Continue Through All Points West, Lollapalooza, Outside Lands and more
New York NY -- June 23, 2009 -- The title, release date and complete track listing for Beastie Boys' eighth studio album have been confirmed: Hot Sauce Committee Part 1 will be released September 15 by Capitol in multiple configurations including a 5.1 surround mix and will consist of the following compositions:

1. Tadlock's Glasses
2. B-Boys In The Cut
3. Make Some Noise
4. Nonstop Disco Powerpack
5. OK
6. Too Many Rappers (featuring NAS)
7. Say It
8. The Bill Harper Collection
9. Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win (featuring Santigold)
10. Long Burn The Fire
11. Bundt Cake
12. Funky Donkey
13. Lee Majors Come Again
14. Multilateral Nuclear Disarmament
15. Pop Your Balloon
16. Crazy Ass Shit
17. Here's A Little Something For Ya

The first Beastie Boys headline date confirmed to follow the album's release, the band's debut stand at the famed Hollywood Bowl, has sold out. Further dates will be announced as they are confirmed.

Meanwhile, Beastie Boys recently began a summer festival mission with a set at the Bonnaroo festival in Manchester TN that blew the crowd of 70,000-plus out of their Birkenstocks and caused devil sticks to spontaneously combust. The performance featured an appearance by Nas who joined the Boys for the live debut of the new record's "Too Many Rappers," as well as a rare appearance from Country Mike for an acoustic rendition of "Heart Attack Man."

The mission will continue throughout the summer and will include upcoming appearances at the All Points West and Lollapalooza festivals, the latter of which will be preceded by a just-announced intimate Beastie Boys show at the Congress in Chicago on Thursday, August 6.
Finally, the last installment of the deluxe, remastered, expanded and altogether awesome Beastie Boys catalogue reissues will be dropping in advance of the new record: the band's multi-platinum 1998 opus Hello Nasty will be given the 2-CD/vinyl box set/multi-format treatment beginning with an August 17 pre-order/digital release and will hit stores August 25. Preceded by the universal smash "Intergalactic," Hello Nasty crashed into the #1 spots of charts worldwide upon its July 1998 release, with first week sales of nearly 700,000 in the U.S. alone. Buoyed by the launch of the 360 in the round tour, Hello Nasty would yield B Boys classics "Body Movin'," "Three MCs and One DJ," "Remote Control," "Super Disco Breakin'" and more, win two Grammys, see the band presented with an MTV Video Vanguard lifetime achievement award, and ultimately sell some 7 million copies worldwide.

As previously announced, pre-orders for the expanded, remastered multi-format Ill Communication will begin July 6, with a physical release of July 14.

For a complete list of deluxe reissue configurations, as well as upcoming Beastie Boys festival and headline appearances, check Beastieboys.com.

~Information courtesy Nasty Little Man

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Since when has the DECC had a train station?

Crazy Beck news!

BECK.COM
EXTENSIVE OVERHAUL TO FEATURE DEBUT OF RECORD CLUB
Beck & Friends Form Music Club To Re-Record Entire Albums In One-Day Sessions and Post a Track a Week

Beck.com will be undergoing an extensive overhaul in the next month. It will feature several new sections, including Record Club, a regular meeting of various musicians to record an entire album in one day. Due to the time constraints involved in recording a record in a day, an album will be chosen to be covered and used as a framework for the proceedings. Nothing will be rehearsed or arranged ahead of time. A track from these sessions will be uploaded once a week on Beck.com, as well as through the web sites of those involved in the project.

Record Club will be an ongoing experiment visitors to the site will be able to follow from week to week.

The first album attempted--one of the few everyone could agree on--will be The Velvet Underground & Nico.

Musicians involved in upcoming Record Clubs include Devendra Banhart, MGMT, Jamie Lidell and Nigel Godrich.

~Information courtesy Nasty Little Man

Sunday, June 14, 2009

sys55 :: SHUN THE NONBELIEVERS


Like "Song(s) 4 Klang" and "Ostey." before it, this special installment of SHAKE*YOUR*SHORES was lovingly hand-crafted for an accomplice of mine. The lucky recipient? Nikki Uren, a bona fide Upper Peninsula "princess" (she had a pony when she was little) I met through the mysterious Job No. 2. Pressing on, a few quick facts about this WEIRDO you might want to understand before diving into this awesome mix tape: She likes a lot of upbeat, FUN bands; she's unbelievably accommodating despite suffering from a level of hypochondria that borders on laughable*; and, oh yeah, she changed my life ... by introducing me to a magical unicorn and his shifty-eyed "friends."

Ring, ring?



1. The Rentals - "Getting By"
The first thing you do when you're about to sit down and put together an awesome mix tape for a close friend is feel them out and see what bands and/or songs really get them excited. Nikki gets exceedingly giddy at even the slightest mention of Weezer and, yet, she has no working knowledge of that band's glorious offshoots and side projects. So, in short, what better way to start off a mix tape than one of former bassist Matt Sharp's most exciting recordings?

2. Rob Crow - "I Hate You, Rob Crow" [Album Version]
I don't, and I don't foresee Nikki hating him either; not since the Pixies has a song under the two-minute mark won over so many ears.

3. Boxcar Racer - "All Systems Go"
Again, back to the "If you like A) you're gonna love B)" theory, Nikki adores blink-182 — and this short-lived side project picked off right where that group's self-titled "farewell" album left off.

4. Jimmie's Chicken Shack - "Do Right" [Radio Mix]
Finally an excuse to pick this chicks-always-dig-it No. 1 shot on one of these here mix tapes!

5. Homie - "American Girls"
The most baffling band of all time is also one of the most consistent. True, this impeccably orchestrated supergroup, featuring members of Weezer, Cake, the Rentals and Soul Coughing, only released one song officially (this one, for — strangely enough — the "Meet the Deedles" soundtrack), but, man, what a song it was!

6. Toki Wright - "Next Best Thing" [Free MP3!]
I know Nikki's boyfriend listens to Atmosphere, so hopefully some of his good taste has rubbed off on her and she'll dig this new Rhymesayers standout. (p.s. If you guys like what you hear on the free MP3, Toki will be playing a show with Aceyalone and Long Doe June 27 at the Orpheum in Duluth.)

7. Jonathan Fire*Eater - "These Little Monkeys"
OK, I'll admit it, this was kind of a selfish selection: I haven't heard this rolling throwback for a couple months and, when I saw it just sitting there all by its lonesome on my hard drive, I knew I couldn't deny it the opportunity to be discovered by another soul.

8. The Special Goodness - "Move It Along"
We're not even to Track 10 and we're already on the third Weezer-related group ... oh well, at least it's all been good listening.

Do you agree, buddy? Y / N
(Circle one.)

9. Plastic Eaters - "Bug Away"
Some call it "jungle punk," but I just call it the most addictive high-energy fun you probably haven't heard yet.

10. Felix da Housecat - "Pretty Girls Don't Dance"
A bizarre little "skit" before...

11. Eyedea & Abilities - "This Story" [Free MP3!]
the hot new single from E&A. I don't care who you are, but this fierce slab of forward-thinking hip-hop will set your soul on fire! [BONUS READING FUN: My exclusive interview with emcee extraordinaie Eyedea for the Budgeteer.]

12. Basement Jaxx - "Breakaway"
I kind of cheated here: Nikki admitted to being a huge Basement Jaxx fan, so A) I'm so very proud of her and B) she's probably already heard this classic dance anthem. Oh well, hopefully someone in her mix tape-listening company hasn't....

13. The Butthole Surfers - "Dracula from Houston"
This radio-ready hit was actually supposed to go on the mix I made for Amy, but ... I got lazy and didn't feel like ripping the last Butthole Surfers disc until this week. Man, I am a bum. (Plus, I didn't know this until just now, but apparently this song was used on "Scrubs," a show she and her man watch religiously.)

14. Janis Joplin - "Piece of My Heart"
I'm committing so many awesome mix tape sins here it's not even funny: This is one of the most-loved recordings of all time (as in, only a North Dakotan wouldn't know this one) and *cheeks redden* I may have had prior knowledge of Nikki loving Janis as much as ... oh, I don't know, Jane Krakowski's character on "30 Rock."

15. Prince - "Kiss" [DJ Z-Trip Remix feat. Murs] [Free MP3!]
In the words of the master himself, "This is the best download I own."

16. Jimmy Eat World - "Electable (Give It Up)"
Nikki and I have never discussed this Arizona favorite, but, come on, she's a girl, right?*

17. Flickerstick - "You're So Hollywood"
I'm a little embarassed I'm still so obsessed with this band — winners of VH1's "Bands on the Run" competition thingy — but, if anyone will back me up, it'd be my favorite yooper. (She's too nice not to, anyhow.)

18. Damone - "On Your Speakers"
Well, if that last entry had you rolling your eyes, you probably haven't experienced Damone yet. Yes, it's probably music for little girls, but, dammit, I like it!

This is the sound of summer.

19. Saves the Day - "Certain Tragedy"
... And continuing the string of embarassing selections is Saves the Day, one of those emo bands you just hate to love.

It's impossible not to though, truth be told.

20. Piebald - "American Hearts"
Talk about growing into one's skin: Piebald's early recordings were unabashedly s---, but, over time, one of the most compelling indie rock outfits emerged. More people should know about these guys.

21. Reggie and the Full Effect - "The F--- Stops Here"
I know it probably seems like I'm obsessed with a new band every week, but I've honestly been stuck on Reggie and the Full Effect — started by the Get Up Kids' James Dewees, for those of you who never get your music geek on — for some time. I think what draws me to this outfit is that Dewees doesn't seem to give a f--- about anything: his solo albums are wholly inconsistent, jumping from genre to genre, and, yet, this practice of making records for himself is undeniably exciting. You don't know what each subsequent track will bring, but you're always guaranteed to hear at least a handful of the coolest songs in your entire collection.

And this is one of them. (Nikki, you better at least pretend to be in love with this one!)

22. Schatzi - "Guitars vs. Humans"
Similarly, this track makes you want to blow out a speaker or two — play at maximum volume for *ahem* the full effect.

23. The Red Hot Chili Peppers - "I Found Out" [John Lennon cover]
Like the Weezer-y selections above, Nikki hearts RHCP, so I thought I'd tack on one she probably hasn't spent a lot of time with. From "Working Class Hero," aka the only John Lennon tribute you should have in your "music room."

24. Jets to Brazil - "You're the One I Want"
Hopefully Nikki's boyfriend isn't reading this, lest we have some unpleasantness on our hands because of this song's title....

25. Beck - "It's All in Your Mind"
A little inside joke for my continually "ill" comrade.

*We've already established I'm going to hell eons ago, so don't even bother with the hatemail....

Thus concludes your fifty-fifth dose of SHAKE*YOUR*SHORES, the awesome mix tape series formerly known as "Don't Tell a Soul."

Monday, June 8, 2009

sys54 :: HUMAN WAS THE MUSIC


Playboy raves, "Smart, sexy, funny and provocative!" (Too bad they weren't talking about this here awesome mix tape series....)



1. Creeper Lagoon - "Big Money Struggle"
I'm not usually a lyrics guy, but the "Please give me something that will make me dream all day" line from this song really struck a chord with me.

2. Blur - "M.O.R." [Road Version]
Collecting Blur's million-and-a-half singles is a passion of mine, so expect many more selections like this in the next couple months.

3. Spiritualized - "Hold On"
How have I lived so long without Spiritualized in my life? During a (scheduled) break at Job No. 2, I literally kept this track on repeat until it was time to clock back in. Like the majority of songs on the Flaming Lips masterpiece "Clouds Taste Metallic," this one's utterly heartbreaking.

4. Damien Rice - "Creep/The Blower's Daughter" [Live Medley]
Man, that was one lucky Glastonbury audience back in '04: a nearly pitch-perfect cover of Radiohead's first single lends itself to Rice's own haunting anthem (which was, if you'll remember, used to perfection in "Closer").

5. Bishop Allen - "Things are What You Make of Them"
Most teenyboppers know this as the group with the cameo in "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist" (playing themselves -- not "Where's Fluffy?"!), but don't hold that against them. This is undeniably catchy.

6. Soul Position - "Hand-Me-Downs"
Things do go better with "RJ" and "AL." (That's RJD2 and Blueprint, "for those of you without any game." Ha!)

7. The Coup - "5 Million Ways to Kill a C.E.O."
And then there's this militant-rap classic, which juxtaposes nicely against all of Soul Position's positive, anti-cliche messages....

8. Flickerstick - "Chloroform the One You Love"
Speaking of juxtapositions, how about this one? Flickerstick manages to pair one of the most gorgeous backing tracks with a shifty allusion to the disgusting modern-day equivalent of caveman clubbing their female counterparts over the head and dragging them back to their meager dwellings. Still, the song works.

9. The Deathray Davies - "She Can Play Me Like a Drum Machine"
She can, she will and she won't stop.*

10. The Dust Brothers - "Stealing Fat"
Don't recognize this song? Its second half is that amazing piece of music that opens up "Fight Club."

David Fincher, you know what you're doing.

11. Grandaddy - "Pull the Curtains"
... As does Grandaddy mastermind Jason Lytle, who just released a triumphant solo album, "Yours Truly, The Commuter" -- which I should probably get around to reviewing for the Budgeteer.

12. Rob Crow - "Over Your Heart"
Speaking of ubiquitous masterminds, this guy's in at least a dozen bands -- all good (Pinback and Heavy Vegetable being two of my favorites) -- and he still has time to release instantly enjoyable solo records. What's up with the self-loathing, Rob Crow? We could never hate you.

13. Fig Dish - "I Just Want What You Want"
If it's a houseful of Chihuahuas, then this song was definitely written about me and my better half!

14. Pearl Jam - "Go" [Live]
From the somewhat-rare "Dissident" EP series -- which, if you collect all three, nets you an entire set of "Ten" and "Vs." favorites recorded live in Atlanta in the early '90s.

15. Robert Pollard - "Lightshow"
I'm tempted to write that this song is reminiscent of Pearl Jam's glorious "No Code" album, but that's not really fair to the prolific former Guided by Voices frontman -- or to Neil Young, who was obviously a huge influence on both of those legendary groups.

16. The Posies - "Conversations"
Speaking of inspiration, the Posies sound more and more like Big Star and/or the Zombies with every subsequent release.

17. Wilco - "You Never Know"
What a Wilco (The World) we live in: Pretty soon Wilco (The Band) will release "Wilco (The Album)" and, for those lucky Wilco (The Fans) who preordered it on Wilco (The Web site), they were also able to pick up Wilco (The Totebag) and ... OK, I'll stop. But, just for the record, considering how genius the members of Wilco are, they have no right to be so f------ funny!

18. Madness - "You Keep Me Hanging On"
I love this song in all of its myriad incarnations, and Madness' reggae version is definitely no exception.

19. Detroit Grand PuBahs - "Sandwiches" [Live Remix by the Avalanches]
This track alone justifies my ordering the Avalanches' extremely-hard-to-find/wholly illegal live record "When I Met You" off of Amazon's UK site.

Yep, that's me. I'm addicted to CDs.

20. Eminem - "3 a.m."
I was never a huge fan of Marshall Mathers, but a drunken evening on Tower Avenue totally changed my mind. (Thanks to the traditionally d-bag youngsters at Lord Stanley's for playing this one!)

21. Beck - "Halo of Gold" [Skip Spence cover]
Well worth seeking out. (Yes, as was the case with Blur, Beck's singles are fun to collect; again, I have what my wife calls a "sickness"....)

22. Sleeper - "Spies"
How was this slowdanceantheminwaiting passed up by the "Dawson's Creek" soundtrack curators?**

23. Oasis - "Songbird"
For my former Budgeteer colleague Suoja, who is a bona fide Gallagher bros. superfan.

*I'm not speaking too cryptically, am I? (I have a feeling I'm good at that....)

**Strangely, it almost sounds as if Michelle Williams is singing on this one.

Thus concludes your fifty-fourth dose of SHAKE*YOUR*SHORES, the awesome mix tape series formerly known as "Don't Tell a Soul."

Zero 7 is back, free MP3 on Fly High, Duluth!


Acclaimed London trip-hop/downtempo duo Zero 7 will be releasing its new album "Yeah Ghost" Sept. 8, and we've got a free copy of the new song "Everything Up (Zizou)" -- which features the vocal talents of Eska Mtungwaz -- for your downloading pleasure.


A special thanks to Atlantic Records for making this possible!

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

sys53 :: OSTEY.


Like "Song(s) 4 Klang" before it, this special installment of SHAKE*YOUR*SHORES was custom-made for a friend of mine. The lucky recipient? Amy Oster, my former secretary (OK, OK, assistant editor) at the NDSU Spectrum. -> Long story short: I would've succeeded in running that thing into the ground had it not been for her. That meddling do-gooder. I kid, I kid; she's a good friend. But she's also a future lawyer of America and loves god-awful pop music, so consider this her education ... education in being a pompous, artf--- music geek like me. (Honesty is divine, no?)

Kidding aside, I hope you enjoy her selections as well.




1. Santogold - "Lights Out"
This Walt Dizzo-approved gem has been getting a lot of mainstream exposure of late -- thanks to a Target commercial or something -- so I thought it'd be a nice one to ease her into the (potentially frightening) listening experience.

2. Matt & Kim - "Don't Slow Down"
Undeniable ear candy. And I know Amy likes another one of the Mates of State-reminiscent duos (I won't name names, because I think they are embarrassing...), so chances are this one's another "sure shot." [BONUS FUN: Read my review of M&K's "Grand" here.]

3. Mason Jennings - "Your New Man" [Live]
Amy became like a sister to me during our short time together at the paper, and the part of this song where Mason playfully mocks an old flame's new guy reminds me of how I felt about someone's less-than-agreeable college sweetheart.

4. Stuart Davis - "Already Free"
Two reasons for this selection: It's a great pop song (always appreciated) and *ahem* I just have to pimp out the fact that I interviewed Mr. Davis!

5. The Evening Rig - "In Spite of All that Happened"
Amy grew up in small-town North Dakota, so I'll just assume she digs freewheelin' songs that are best described as -- oh no, here comes another piece of shameless self-promotion -- "dirt-road driving music."

6. American Hi-Fi - "The Breakup Song"
Again, someone carelessly admitted that he/she liked embarrassing pop music (in this case the All-American Rejects), so I thought I'd introduce her (oops...) to something along those same lines that is, against all odds, incredibly valid and worthy of inclusion in anyone's record collection.

7. Atmosphere - "Reflections"
Like L.L. before him, Slug knows how to write songs for the ladies.

8. Smoosh - "Rock Song"
Crazy, infectious pop from two bubbly sisters who aren't even old enough to buy a pack of smokes legally. (At least they weren't at the time of this song's recording.)

9. LadyHawke - "Crazy World"
As I've mentioned repeatedly, Amy's tastes are unapologetically steeped in the pop scene, so I hunted down the most outlandish pieces I've ever fallen in love with -- and LadyHawke's output accounts for about half of those tracks.

10. The Coup - "Everythang"
Sure, this could easily be slipped into a dance party playlist (like Liz Lemon on "30 Rock," Amy's No. 1 hobby is impromptu dance parties), but I also included it because I thought it would be hilarious to have a future lawyer "bumping" around the Peace Garden State listening to militant hip-hop.

11. Beck - "Girl"
Well, she is a girl. Only appropriate, right?

12. Anya Marina - "Cut it Out"
OMG I love Anya so much that I'm not afraid to use "OMG" when describing that love.

And something tells me Amy will dig her just as much as I.

13. Basement Jaxx feat. J.C. Chasez - "Plug it In"
This is a perfect track for Ostery: half dance party, half s----- pop. (har har har)

14. The Posies - "Second Time Around"
I've always been a semi-dedicated fan of the Posies ... and then I heard this. <- Will make a believer out of any soul with a working pair.

15. The Flys - "Got You (Where I Want You)"

I feel pretty embarassed to be so moved by this song, so ... it's probably right up Amy's alley then, right? Ha, I kid.

A little too much, perhaps.

Do you think I have her crying yet?*

16. Brad - "La, La, La"
A little rock 'n' roll trivia for my fellow geeks out there: This song used to be called "Be with Me." Maybe it sounded too lame for an awesome power pop song?

17. Flickerstick - "Got a Feeling"
Emotional music (and I don't mean "emo," jackasses) hasn't sounded this sincere since the '80s. God I miss the '80s.

18. Jamestown Story - "Love vs. Life"
Speaking of wearing hearts on sleeves and whatnot, former Duluthian Dane Schmidt -- who/m** I've had the pleasure of interviewing (imagine that...) -- is right up there with Flickerstick for producing "Dawson's Creek"-worthy songs you're not embarrassed to put on mix tapes for friends.

19. Motion City Soundtrack - "Point of Extinction"
As it turns out, Dane is now tight with the boys from MCS, and I believe Ostey will appreciate their high-energy bottle rockets just as much as yours truly.

20. Michael Franti & Spearhead - "Life in the City"
Come on, who doesn't like Spearhead? Sincerely.

21. Ben Lee - "Into the Dark"
I wanted to use his great new track "I Love Pop Music," but that just seemed too obvious. (Don't worry, this one's just as lovely.) [BONUS FUN: Lee's new LP, "The Rebirth of Venus," was praised as one of the albums to restore your faith in recorded sound. Read why.]

22. Brian Wilson - "Baby Let Your Hair Grow Long"
OK, I was just being selfish with this selection. I've been listening to it a lot lately and I didn't want to forget to include it on one of these here awesome mix tapes. Regardless, only a bona fide devil woman wouldn't appreciate the visionary Beach Boy's solo output!

*I sure hope not. She could sue the s--- out of me.

**Ostey, help me out; is it "who" or "whom." I'm sinking without my AP-enhanced "secretary" by my side!

Thus concludes your fifty-third dose of SHAKE*YOUR*SHORES, the awesome mix tape series formerly known as "Don't Tell a Soul."