Whatcha Listenin' Tooooo? (I Ain't Got Much This Week)

Yeah, nothing hugely of note this week. Josh has been busy working pit orchestra gigs, I've been busy looking for a new job, we're between practice spaces for a week or so, so not a ton of breaking news on my part. I thought I'd give a few records I've acquired over the last month that I'm listening to a once over. Who knows, maybe you'll find something you like.

M.I.A.- Kala

I missed the "outing" of M.I.A. a few years back. But on the drive to Coachella from LA last week, this record came up on a friend's iPod a few times and I decided to give it a real listen. I'm really weird about dance music- I do not dance in any fashion and tend to ignore the new genre of "dance-music-for-white-hipsters". But the beats and general production value of this record are really appealing: bits of dub, house, UK club and really unique samples (I'm particular to the Bollywood string samples).

Buraka Som Sistema- Black Diamond
Again with the white-kid dance music. These guys are from Portugal (I worked a lot with Brazilians over the last year, so my taste for things Portugese was awakened), and are just highly energetic and fun. Seeing them do it live also helped my appreciation for them, they were a live electronic band with live drums (two guys, in fact, one on kit and one on percussion), instead of the usual "guy-with sampler-deck" set up you usually see. The percussion definitely made them a dynamic live band as well as a great band on CD.

The Tragically Hip- We Are The Same
I've pretty much bought everything by these guys. Possibly one of the finest rock bands I have ever seen play, and their last couple of records have been outstanding. Produced my Bob Rock (of Metallica fame), this one and the last have a very rich sound and share more in common with their live sound than anything they've done previous. "We Are The Same" explores a little more of the country and Americana side of the band (the last one was straight-up stadium rock), and Gord Downie's lyrics are still as arresting and unique as they were when I first heard "Ahead By A Century" back in 1996. If you like awesome, awesome rock, you need to get anything by this band.

Mastodon- Crack The Skye

Josh and I have been absolutely nuts about this record for the last several weeks. Mastodon gets the label "the metal band for people who don't think they like metal", and it often gets said with a bit of a sneer. What on Earth is wrong with being what I like to call a "gateway band"? If this record gets a bunch of people to explore Mastodon's back catalog, and maybe Neurosis (their singer appears on just about every Mastodon record) and a few others, what the hell is wrong with that? Even James likes this one, and James normally makes faces at just about any metal Josh and I put on in the car. The sneers about Mastodon remind me of the sneers thrown Metallica's way back in the day. The only difference is that Metallica wishes it was/could ever be as good as Mastodon. And now... let the hate mail commence.

Bat for Lashes- Two Suns

My love for artists like Kate Bush, Beth Orton, Bjork, PJ Harvey etc., is nothing short of endless. And I'm really digging Natasha Khan's project, Bat For Lashes. There's something about ornate studio production and soulful vocals that just does it for me. This record is so dense with great arrangements (another one of my major musical turn-ons), it's both highly relaxing and highly energizing. I find myself remarking out loud "Wow, THAT works well!" to my speakers when this record is on.

Next week, I think I'll give my list "Top Musical Crimes Perpetuated In The Name of 'Alternative' In The 90s". It may be a multiple week thing, I can think of A LOT of "crimes".

-Dan