After numerous false starts, it looks like spring has finally sprung. Let’s see what’s on the agenda that won’t require you to be inside (for too long, at least).
The Plan
Friday: Head down to Subterranean A (good new DC venue or best new DC venue?) for an evening of laughter – the succinctly titled Comedy Underground. After that, Matthew Dear puts down the guitar and gets back in the DJ booth for Red Friday at U Hall.
Saturday: Is there anything better than eating delicious food at a street fair? Taste of 8th takes over Barracks Row from 1-4PM, as twenty area restaurants present their signature dishes at reasonable prices. While you’re in SE, you might as well keep it martial and head from the Barracks to the Armory for the DC Rollergirls.
Sunday: Take it easy Saturday night because the first Sunday of the month is always a good one. The folks behind Forward Fest are taking over Yards Park, and if you haven’t been to Tropixxx at Velvet Lounge yet, what are you waiting for?
The Soundtrack
A couple of moombahton minimixes should do the trick. First up, the preview for Dave Nada’s moombahton compilation (Blow Your Head, Vol. 2, out May 31st on Mad Decent), and then the promo mix for the forthcoming EP by Billy the Gent, Long Jawns, and DJ JWLS. Dale!
I first wrote about Julio Bashmore last year, but in the months since, I haven’t spilled nearly enough digital ink on the UK underground sensation. Please let me attempt to right that wrong.
Julio Bashmore is Matthew Walker, a producer from the epicenter of the dubstep scene, Bristol. Contrary to his city’s dominant sound, however, Bashmore makes house music: deep, mellow, funky house. He first gained attention with a 12-inch on Claude vonStroke’s Dirtybird imprint; “Um Bongo’s Revenge” is tribal, vital, and signaled the arrival of a new producer to watch.
[wpaudio url=”/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/umbongosrevenge.mp3″ text=”Julio Bashmore – Um Bongo’s Revenge” dl=0]
Since then, Bashmore has been highly prolific, releasing a handful of EPs, single, and remixes. All have featured non-stop grooves, elastic basslines, and warm synths. Vocal samples are impeccably selected, and looped into dreamy, hypnotic refrains. He checks all of these boxes on last year’s “Footsteppin”
Recent releases have gotten sharper, emerging from shadow and fog into the clarity of disco ball light. The Everyone Needs a Theme Tune EP has a throwback feel, with funkadelic synths and 808s aplenty. On “Battle for Middle You,” Bashmore turns a 10-year-old sample (from Mateo & Matos’ “Stomp Your Feet“) into a tech house anthem.
[wpaudio url=”/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/battleformiddleyou.mp3″ text=”Julio Bashmore – Battle for Middle You” dl=0]
Over a year old, Bashmore’s exclusive mix for Vice is a constant play. From his remix of Deadboy‘s “Heartbreaker” to plenty of Night Slugs selections, it’s no wonder why.
The Beastie Boys are masters of reinvention. They started as a NYC hardcore band in 1979 (!) before breaking through as party-starting rap rockers in the mid 80s. Since then, they’ve matured musically, and more significantly, personally. There isn’t a bigger 180 than trying to name your album Don’t Be a Faggot and then spearheading the free Tibet movement. Accordingly, the Beastie Boys have done everything they can (including publicly apologizing) to move beyond their early years.
Until now.
Finally embracing their “Hooligans of Hip Hop” stage, the Beastie Boys have struck comedic gold with the surreal short-film Fight for Your Right Revisted. Written and directed by Adam Yauch (the thankfully cancer-free MCA), the film picks up where 1986’s “Fight for Your Right” video left off. For reference, the original clip is required viewing. The MTV Era classic was loaded with cameos (Tabitha Soren, Rick Rubin, LL Cool J) and references (George Romero’s Dawn of the Dead).
Crawling out of that debauchery are the Beastie Boys, played by Seth Rogen, Danny McBride, and Elijah Wood. The lithe Wood is the only passable imitator, but that’s hardly the point. This cast was assembled for maximum hilarity; the dialogue has an ad-libbed feel, which isn’t tough to imagine, considering the comedic talents that took part. It’s a Who’s Who of blink-and-miss-it cameos, everyone film pros like Susan Sarandon to hipster favorites like Jason Schwartzman. It feels like a friends and family production that must have been a blast to produce.
The video is set to music from their eagerly awaited album Hot Sauce Committee, Pt. 2. “Make Some Noise” and “Say It” are spun, rewound, sped up, slowed down to match the video’s increasingly twisted antics. After doing whip-its and acid with switchblade-wielding metal chicks (played by Chloe Sevigny, Kirsten Dunst, and Maya Rudolph), the Beasties are met by a DeLorean from – where else? – the future.
Cue big reveal: the Future Beastie Boys, played by Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly, and Jack Black. To settle this time traveling identity crisis, a b-boy competition (conflict resolution, 1986 style) is proposed. The climactic battle turns into a pissing contest – literally. The Beastie Boys’ opinions on this era of their history are less than subtle. After a bit of slow motion water sports, the cops (played by the real-life Beasties) shut it all down.
The self-referential, meta fest goes far beyond the Beastie Boys vs. Beastie Boys set-up. Will Ferrell, before showing up as a future Beastie, references his most famous SNL skit, cowbell in hand. David Cross appears as Nathanial Hörnblowér, Yauch’s lederhosened alter ego, and Will Arnett delivers a GOB-like “come on!” (while wearing what’s possibly a $5,000 suit). Like Arrested Development, the film rewards repeat viewings.
Fight for Your Right Revisited is fan service at its finest, answering the eternal question: who are the real Beastie Boys?
While many are vying to tag The Weeknd’s music with a genre name, not many were clamoring for slower, meditative versions of his already down-tempo jams. Despite this, two chopped and screwed takes on the House of Balloons mixtape have cropped up, with mixed results.
Swishahouse co-founder and chopped and screwed pioneer OG Ron C gives his trademark treatment to House of Balloons, as does Odd Future member Mike G. Both versions provide the syrupy (in more ways than one) sounds for which the genre is known, but as expected, OG Ron C’s comes out ahead.
The veteran does more chopping than a sous chef; his sample twisting on mixtape standout “What You Need” manages to make the tune even more hypnotic.
[wpaudio url=”/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/WeekndOGRonC.mp3″ text=”The Weeknd – What You Need (OG Ron C version)” dl=0]
Mike G, on the other hand, opts for a more straightforward BPM drop. Sometimes that’s enough: the sinister “Glass Table Girls” coda on the title track doesn’t need much work before sounding like witch house.
[wpaudio url=”/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/WeekndMikeG.mp3″ text=”The Weeknd – House of Balloons / Glass Table Girls (Mike G version)” dl=0]
At first glance, chopping and screwing House of Balloons seems redundant and unnecessary. But the inspiration seems to be drawn straight from The Weeknd’s lyrics.
From “Wicked Game:”
Bring your love, baby I can bring my shame
Bring the drugs, baby I can bring my pain
I got my heart right here, I got my scars right here
Bring the cups, baby I can bring the drank
On his debut record, Everybody Wah, Bosco Delrey builds upon the timewarped sounds of his initial singles. The album is full of jangly rockabilly and rambunctious garage rock, loaded with hooks and a slicked-back swagger.
In the lull since last year’s releases, it was clear that Delrey’s biggest hurdle would be meeting the immediacy of songs like “Evil Lives” or “Space Junkie.” On Everybody Wah, the rumbling, electric organ jam “Glow Go The Bones” and catchy album opener “Baby’s Got a Blue Flame” are up to the challenge.
[wpaudio url=”/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/01-Babys-Got-A-Blue-Flame.mp3″ text=”Bosco Delrey – Baby’s Got A Blue Flame” dl=0]
Everybody Wah presents a modern take on classic rock and roll without aping it note-for-note. The songs mix an old school songwriting approach with diverve new school influences, the kind of formula that led Diplo to call Delrey a “garbage can Elvis.” “Get Outta Dodge” swirls under a psychedelic fuzz; the electro-tinged “Archebold Ivy” has the weirdness of Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd; “Afterlife” grooves with a mellow dancehall beat. In all cases, Delrey serves up patchwork, not pastiche.
The flip-side to sock hop rock songs is the doo-wop / country western ballad, which Delrey also handles with aplomb. “Expelled Spelled Expelled,” “Down We Go,” and “Insta Love” are updates of the classic style, with gentle arpeggios and even gentler melodies.
[wpaudio url=”/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/10-Down-We-Go.mp3″ text=”Bosco Delrey – Down We Go” dl=0]
The album closes with the spacey, galloping electronics of “20 Flight Dub.” The song is a bit of an outlier, but it serves as a fine digestif after an impossibly catchy full length. The song’s unofficial video pairs it with the surrealistic touchstone Un Chien Andalou. For an album of unexpected twists and turns, it’s a fitting choice.
Everybody Wah comes out tomorrow, April 26, on Mad Decent.
That’s the advice Joe Bradley of the Black Lips offers early on in New Garage Explosion: In Love With These Times, a documentary by Aaron Brown and Joseph Patel about the last decade’s garage rock scene (Ed. note: quote originally incorrectly attributed to Cole Alexander). Those four words manage to sum up the scene (and film) better than I could, but I’ll give it a shot.
The garage rock profiled in New Garage Explosion harks back to punk’s origins, not the hardcore punk of blackshirt mosh pits. It’s punk filtered through 50s rock’n’roll, 60s bubblegum pop, and 70s psychedelia. It’s also very much a regional movement: cities like San Francisco, Brooklyn, Memphis, Detroit, and Atlanta have their own scenes, bands, and sounds, but are all united by a brash, punk attitude and a DIY spirit.
New Garage Explosion documents the pillars of garage: the influences, the lo-fi recording process, the financial realities and the lifestyle. The film is interspersed with performances, rarely showing too many talking heads before getting back to its core: the visceral live performance of garage rock. Missing is the narrative of great documentaries: the audience is following one band’s experience, but rather the entire experience. It’s a cut-and-paste, film-as-zine approach that suits the topic.
Fans of any of the bands shown (Black Lips, Magic Kids, Vivian Girls, Smith Westerns, Davila 666, to name a few), will probably discover a new band, classic record, or groundbreaking record label from watching New Garage Explosion. Like the characters in High Fidelity, the interviewees relish the chance to list favorite obscurities. There is a record-store-nerd current throughout the film that anyone who has spent time in a cultural/musical underground will appreciate.
Sadly, the specter of Jay Reatard looms over the film. The film’s first case study died after an accidental overdose at just 29. On stage and off, Reatard was antagonistic and self destructive, but with a self-awareness evident in his interviews. Chillingly, he remembers punk rock records made by “dudes that kinda did make it… and then they fucking threw it all away and made these amazing albums on their downward spirals.” As he trails off, he references his prophetically titled Watch Me Fall. Unfortunately, understanding history did not prevent Reatard from repeating it.
New Garage Explosion is a brief (only 75 minutes long) introduction to a scene that is very much alive. The film features a brief section on the cycle of buzz band hype, asking “What does it take for a band to have lasting power?” Maybe that means taking Joe Bradley’s advice.
Friday: It’s a TGIF for dancing. If you’re 22 or younger, head to the 411 Warehouse for the last Wild North of the season. Older than that and you should be at U Hall as the Beautiful Swimmers crew hosts Theo Parrish for Red Friday.
Sunday: There’s a fully-loaded concert double header. The Kills, Cold Cave, and The Entrance Band play a sold-out crowd at 9:30, and hip-hop saviors Big K.R.I.T. and Freddie Gibbs take over U Hall.
The Soundtrack
Clockwork’s resident space disco expert Chris Nitti put out an hour-long mix of spring sounds titled simply “April.” Nitti’s profile is rising for a reason: add an encyclopedic knowledge of house music to a talent at seamless mixing and you can’t go wrong.
Tracklist:
Coma – Raindrops
Ron Deacon – Untitled B2
Pantha Du Prince – A Nomad’s Retreat (The Sight Below Remix)
Azari & III – Into The Night (Nicolas Jaar Remix)
Dinky – Polvo
Lee Foss – Cabin Party
Todd Terje – Ragysh
Cut Copy – Need You Now (Carl Craig Remix)
Andre Obin – Soft Rain (Patrice Baumel Future Mix)
Lone – Once In A While (Midland Mix)
Bloc Party – Signs (Pantha Du Prince Remix)
Harald Grosskopf – Synthesist (Snoretex Remix)
The term “wunderkind” gets thrown around a lot, especially with young musicians needing nothing more than an Internet connection to distribute their work. But what else would you call a producer who released four singles in less than a year, runs his own record label (Hurst Recordings), and is just barely 19 years old?
Christoph Andersson makes refreshingly vibrant electro-pop from his New Orleans home. Think mellow Kitsuné jams with the pop sensibilities (and without the ego) of Calvin Harris. While attending the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, Andersson made his own music every day in the electronic music vacuum that is New Orleans. The result is shimmering dance music that is equal parts house, electro, and disco with a distinct melodic edge.
In a unique turn, Andersson’s singles have featured dual versions of each song (in addition to remixes by artists like Brenmar and Cedaa). The surging “Metropol” is chilled into the downtempo “Metropolis,” “Capital” keeps its anthemic chorus but becomes the mellow “Cache,” and so on.
The recently released Getaway single follows the same pattern. The title track adds elements of UK funky into the mix, while “Gestalt” is driven by exotic percussion and the electronic chirps of a Night Slugs track. Andersson’s catchy vocal melody is brought up in the mix, as well.
Alec Baldwin’s recent comments about the end of 30 Rock were quickly rebutted and walked back. Initially promising one more season, Baldwin changed his tune to five more, placating fans still shell-shocked by Arrested Development. But as the critical darling nears the 100 episode mark, would ending it be such a bad thing?
After four seasons of rewriting the book on the TV sitcom, the fifth season has been mixed, at best. Story lines have been underdeveloped and quickly discarded. After making Jack’s struggle to balance work and romance a focal point for several seasons, he finally married alpha-female Avery (Elizabeth Banks) and had a child. But with Banks’ limited availability, the “Jack as husband and father” story line has been kiboshed. The same can be said about Tracy’s newest child and Jenna’s romance with the crossdressing Paul (Will Forte). Instead of continuing to mine new material, the writers have fallen back on “Tracy/Jenna as diva” gags that have been run into the ground.
Story lines are driven by character interactions, and while we have seen most combinations multiple times, new characters (and new angles) have been neglected. While writing-out dimwit cast member Josh (Lonny Ross) wasn’t a big loss, abandoning his replacement Danny (Cheyenne Jackson) has been. The show rehashed a gag about forgetting about Danny this season, but scripting around his character would give the show a much needed infusion of new blood.
However, the most significant problem is the amped up writing. Compared to the earliest seasons, the latest episodes are too frenetic, the jokes too contrived. Going for the cheap joke and the throwaway reference makes the show resemble Family Guy. As South Park deftly satirized:
30 Rock is still fantastic TV, but it no longer lingers in the collective consciousness or holds up on repeat viewings. The problem is magnified by a show that manages to out-30 Rock 30 Rock: Community. Community has taken the reins on the Thursday night block, playing to the strengths of a talented ensemble. The show is “meta” at its finest, even topping 30 Rock‘s forays into the examination of the sitcom medium.
Ending 30 Rock now would preserve the show’s reputation as a television classic, while letting Community shine. While NBC probably won’t do it, it should. Making way for new classics keeps the Peacock vibrant… even if this topic will pop up again after about 50 episodes of Community.
Since pairing up on the Munbreakton EP last June, Heartbreak and Munchi have both come a long way. The duo has been a guiding force in the development of moombahton, consistently pushing boundaries and even planting the flags on derivative genres. Seven months after their last collaboration – Fuck H & M – and they’re back for the crown.
Moombahsoul, the most promising 108 BPM subgenre, is well represented here. John Legend’s “Ordinary People” and Jay Z’s “Song Cry” become “The Legend” and “Me and My Bitch,” respectively. Add those two superstars to the list of artists (LL Cool J, The Fugees, Big Pun, DeBarge, etc.) that have been given the moombahton treatment, with stellar results.
Munchi’s “Learn” and Heartbreak’s “Jump Up & Twist” have sharper edges; on these tracks, the tropical bass movement comes full-circle as the dembow rhythm is applied to reggae, dancehall and bashment. The EP reaches the proverbial 11 on a pair of moombahcore tunes. Heartbreak, arguably the inventor of the dubstep-moombahton hybrid, picks up where “King Kong” left off on “Doomsday.” Munchi’s remix of “Warface” by dubstepper Jakes gives an even more martial feel to the Full Metal Jacket sampling original.
Munchi shouldered the blame for this release’s delay, but after the last couple of months, I think his friends and fans are just happy to see him return to form. In his own words: “This promo went from being Moombahsoul to Moombahcore to Moombashment to ‘You know what, fuck it lets just put this shit out.‘” Long live the kings of moombahton!
Bonus: DJ Ayres released ten edits and blends that he whipped up for last week’s Moombahton Massive. In the spirit of free moombahton, grab the tracks from Soundcloud.
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