The Tape

Just a reminder for all of you LAists. Shoot an email to us (thetapeblog@yahoo.com) with the subject TMTS CONTEST for a chance to win a pair of tickets to see Throw Me The Statue and Bishop Allen on the 11th of November.

Stream of consciousness hip-hop can be a bit excessive, when consumed in large quantities. Sole however, is one of those guys that never gets old. The former Anticon dude has a new record out with Fake Four Inc.

The single is “Battlefields”, a great track, if you can stand its glum atmosphere. It sounds a little bit like Cage, but that’s an unfair comparison since Cage wasn’t famous when Sole first started. The track features Markus Acher of The Notwist, and has a pretty cool accompanying video, which you can check out below. Another favorite of mine is “Black”, the epic closing track on the record. A big beat surrounds the listener, enticing it with some apocalyptic drums and synths. Various percussion instruments crash through the track, making themselves noticed while keeping a sense of mystery intact. Sole’s vocals come in, and slowly quiet down as the music does the same. The track ends larger than it started, which is something I’m glad he did. Check out the video for “Battlefields” below, along with the MP3.

Sole & The Skyrider Band- Battlefields

Sole & The Skyrider Band- Black

Holy shit, these past couple of days have been amazing for Brooklyn and music in general. Dirty Projectors’ new EP leaked, and the new tracks are amazing. Expectations are always high for a band of their caliber, but as usual, they exceeded them. I don’t want to get in trouble with Mr. Web Sheriff, so check out “Ascending Melody” here, and “Emblem Of The World” here.

In other news, Yeasayer are giving away the first single for Odd Blood, right here. Just give them your email address, and bask in “Ambling Alp” glory. The track is great, and gets me very excited for the new record.

Track Listing

1. The Children
2. Ambling Alp
3. Madder Red
4. I Remember
5. O.N.E.
6. Love Me Girl
7. Rome
8. Strange Reunions
9. Mondegreen
10. Grizelda

A bunch of CMJ videos have surfaced courtesy of Ray Concepcion, and this may be the best one. “Basement” is a Real Estate track off of their upcoming Mexican Summer 12″, something I’m very excited for. I’m really digging their Woodsist debut, which officially hits stores November 17th. Check out the video, and download the first single from the Woodsist album, entitled “Beach Comber.”

Real Estate- Beach Comber

luc is Luke. Luke is Luke Wyland. Luke Wyland is lead singer/multi instrumentalist for the wonderful band AU. AU recently opened up for WHY? in Los Angeles, and blew me away. I found a couple of tracks he did solo, and they’re pretty great. Said The Gramophone led me to these tracks, so all thanks goes to his impeccable taste.

“Backbone nuance give millions hope.” is a wonderful track, short with a long title. A folky vibe characterizes the track, shuffling along, building upon itself for about a minute and a half. Some cool percussion is added and the vocals become more prominent. The track eventually laps itself, and abruptly ends. A really nice, short track. “HI” is a bit more experimental, and a lot more similar to Luke’s music with AU. Experimental instrumentation is key here, but in a perfect moderation. The track never gets to far away from itself, always harnessing its core ideas just before it breaks away completely. You can download both of these tracks below, along with an AU track. Purchase all things AU and luc right here.

luc- Backbone nuance give millions hope.

luc- HI

Double albums are never successful (so says Yoni Wolf in one of WHY?’s latest interview), but that’s only because good acts never try to put them out. This shitty image that comes to mind in relation to a double album may be getting closer to shattering (at least in my mind), because the London quartet will be releasing (Measure), on Feburary 16th, 2010. The double album may not be coming out for a while, but we have a new track to hold you over until next year. “Measure” is a melancholy track with an upbeat feel, something that is a rare occurrence. Luscious strings and well placed percussion make this track what it is, along with some charming vocals. There’s a wide variety of instruments on this track, including a very well placed acoustic guitar. This track makes me very interested for what the record will sound like, and based on this, it should be good.

Field Music
(Measure)

In The Mirror
Them That Do Nothing
Each Time is a New Time
Measure
Effortlessly
Clear Water
Lights Up
All You’d Ever Need to Say
Let’s Write a Book
You and I
The Rest is Noise
Curves of the Needle
Choosing Numbers
The Wheels are in Place
First Come the Wish
Precious Plans
See You Later
Something Familiar
Share the Words
It’s About Time

Field Music- Measure

Some more gangster goodness for y’all. Coke heroes Clipse (or The Clipse if you’re a square), have brought Killa Cam out of retirement for “Popular Demand (Popeyes).” The chorus is led by Clipse, and I’m really digging this track. It’s really catchy, and absolutely hilarious. “I’m outside of Popeyes eating chicken and fries”, a prime example of a funny line, also happens to be the chorus. Cam returns with a nice verse, although it’s nothing memorable. The line “I’m that other guy that got your mother high is pretty funny, though.” Pusha T has a pretty rad verse, a bit triumphant if nothing else. “Money stacked to the ceiling just as quick as it’s dispensed, who knew all those commas meant you could lose your common sense?” That may be one of my favorite lines of the track, and maybe one of the better Clipse lines I’ve heard in a while. Clipse’s ‘Till The Casket Drops drops (pun) sometime soon, although I have no idea if this track will be featured on it. Either way, I can’t wait for Hell Hath No Fury’s official follow up.

Clipse- Popular Demand (Popeyes) (Feat. Cam’ron)

In other news, rumors are getting serious about a new Madvillian record. According to sources, Doom and Madlib are back together, readying a new LP that features Mos Def and Dave Sitek of TV On The Radio. Thanks to The Fader for the link, which includes a few snippets played by J. Rocc during Fat Beats Radio on East Village Radio last week.

We’ve been hot on the heels of this release ever since it’s astonishing album cover (above) became a public image. The word trippy, however hackneyed the phrase may be, seems a pretty apt way of describing the alien design, and it left fans in eager anticipation of a release equally as alien and starting. The subsequent LP proved to be just that, expanding on their genre bending debut with 7 new tracks which challenge the constructs of song and melody. To say the album is ambient, the genre which my itunes ascribes to Tarot Sport, would be degrading. Indeed, that may be the general “vibe” which comes to mind, yet to pigeonhole this music as experimental ambiance would be as non-descript as the word ambient itself. It’s much more interesting and challenging to analyze concretely what sets this music apart from Fuck Buttons’ ambitious contemporaries.

To me, their uniqueness lies in the duo’s estranged perspective on what makes a song. As evident throughout both of their releases, they pay no mind to a verse, chorus model (a model utilized by some of their experimental contemporaries, Animal Collectieve included, along with many others). The Aussie’s seem to favor repetition and slow growth with subtle undulations, a method which detracts from the accessibility of their songs, yet provide the listener with an almost meditative listening experience. This writing technique has become somewhat of a signature of theirs, very akin to that of Dan Deacon, but without any vocals to shape the form. Tarot Sport seems much more layered than its predecessor and much more danceable, a trait which may garner them a shred of mainstream popularity. As apparent throughout the album, they have swapped their a bit of their melodic minimalism for a more, shall we say, Gui Boratto-esque approach. A strong narrative is very prevalent across the LP and after a listen, you really feel like you’ve been taken on a journey (cliche, I know, but still awesome). In parting, I would caution that this release is not for the casual listener as it requires time, patience and a great deal of contemplation to even begin to understand and possibly enjoy. Yet, for anyone willing to humor such a texture oriented album, it will certainly be worth your while. Enjoy one of the album’s little odysseys below and check back for any information regarding tour dates etc, etc.

Fuck Buttons- Flight Of The Feathered Serpent

About a week ago, one of my favorite bands in the world, WHY? came to LA. Hitting up the Echoplex, the show was highly anticipated by many people in the city. Before the show, both Yoni and Josiah were seen wandering up and down the streets, really giving off a humble vibe. The doors opened at 8, and Serengeti & Polyphonic promptly hit the stage. In fear of offending some, let me just say that I was not a fan of their music and leave it at that. After they played for a little too long, AU hit the stage, a band that really blew me away. They really impressed me, resembling Animal Collective with a live drummer (just a little bit). They maybe lost a few fans for playing for a while, but I really didn’t mind it because the songs were great.

After way too long of a wait, Yoni and co. hit the stage to a loud roar. Everyone was glad to see them, and Yoni seemed pretty happy as well. Hilariously dancing along to most every song they played, Yoni really was an entertainer. I don’t know if he was drunk, or if that’s just the way he is onstage, but either way it was hilarious. The show was amazing, mostly because the entire band was so tight and locked in. I spotted Andre Hyland (Blake Maxwell) on the side of the stage cracking up, when someone screamed “I Need A Little Time.” It was some pretty funny stuff. My only complaint was the lack of balance in their setlist. They played 5 Eskimo Snow songs, 8 Alopecia songs, 1 Hymie’s Basement song, and only 1 Elephant Eyelash song. This really disappointed me, because I absolutely adore the record. Despite the lack of Elephant Eyelash, the show was amazing, surpassing my extremely high expectations. Check out a video of “The Hollows” (from the show), and “21st Century Pop Song”, the amazing Hymie’s Basement track they played. There’s no L.A. footage of “21st Century Pop Song”, so the footage is from Denver. Check out some pictures, the set list, and a few tracks below.

Set List

01. Against Me
02. Song Of The Sad Assassin
03. These Hands
04. The Vowels Pt. 2
05. Good Friday
06. These Few Presidents
07. January Twenty Something
08. Gnashville
09. On Rose Walk, Insomniac
10. Into The Shadows Of My Embrace
11. Yo Yo Bye Bye
12. Fatalist Palmistry
13. By Torpedo Or Crohn’s
14. The Hollows
15. 21st Century Pop Song (Hymie’s Basement)

WHY?- Gnashville

WHY?- By Torpedo Or Crohn’s (Almost Live)

Hymie’s Basement- 21st Century Pop Song

Bishop Allen and Throw Me The Statue will be hitting LA’s own El Rey Theater on November 10th, and we have a pair of tickets to give away. Throw Me The Statue are touring in support of their latest record, Creaturesque, which was put out by the always great Secretly Canadian Records. It should be a night filled with great, upbeat pop music, and all you have to do to go for FREE is send us an email. Shoot us an email (thetapeblog@yahoo.com), with “TMTS CONTEST” in the subject, and you’ll be automatically entered to win.

And once again, the show is in Los Angeles. That means that if you don’t live in Los Angeles, or are not planning on being here on the 10th, DON’T ENTER. Download a TMTS track below.

Throw Me The Statue- Ship