Music
Essays, blog posts, playlists, and more focused broadly on music. For more playlists visit my Spotify profile.
- Mates of State to play Weisman Art Museum, release digital EP ()
News just came in that Mates of State would be performing at the inaugural installment of the WAMplified! at the Weisman Art Museum. WaMplified! is a late-night series that “presents a live performance by a band or musician with a thematic connection to the major exhibition in the galleries.” Included in the $22 ticket price ($18 for […]
- “The March of Time” mixtape gets heavy on MPLS ()
Streetwear company The Airtime Collection & Pwelbs recently dropped an absolutely ferocious mixtape that is packed with some of Minneapolis’ brightest emcees. Here’s a taste of what you’re getting yourself into if you decide to take them up on the offer of downloading it at the low low price of free.99: Nero “Yep, Ya Dig”Dave Coresh “Keep It Movin’”Chuck L.I. “Contact”LA […]
- Stream Bob Dylan’s “Must Be Santa” ()
Yesterday saw the release of Bob Dylan’s new Christmas-themed album, Christmas in the Heart. And while the final product is a bit hit-or-miss (miss, definitely miss) Dylan’s heart is in the right place with the release as proceeds the sale of the album will be going to Feeding America, “All of the artist’s U.S. royalities [sic] from sales of […]
- team9 Interview ()
When did you start making mashups? team9: In their current form I started probably about 2002. I think the first one I did was Shola Ama vs. the Pet Shop Boys, I’ve got no idea where that is now–long deleted. I used to mess around with mixing tapes into records though back in the ’80s. […]
- No Bird Sing “Devil’s Trombones” Video ()
In preparation for the release of No Bird Sing‘s self-titled debut earlier this summer, City Pages interviewed the band and attempted to draw an accurate description of its music. “[No Bird Sing] is a hybrid, a product of a city where the MCs listen to NPR, musicians feel free to mix partying and post-modernism, and […]
- Murs, Slug & Aesop Rock get their cake on ()
To express anything remotely resembling a slanderous shot at Rhymesayers is typically grounds for an ass-kicking in the Twin Cities. And if you take that one step further and talk smack about Atmosphere, you might as well start shutting down your Facebooks and your MySpaces, because some serious hate is coming your way. Even when […]
- To Kill A Petty Bourgeoisie “In People’s Homes” Video ()
Continual Stereogum darlings Jehna Wilhelm and Mark McGee have popped up on the music site once again, this time debuting a new music video from their latest album Marlone. If anything, “In People’s Homes” is an outlier in terms of what can be expected from the band, but a diversion that is as enjoyable a […]
- To Kill A Petty Bourgeoisie release “In People’s Homes” video ()
Continual Stereogum darlings Jehna Wilhelm and Mark McGee have popped up on the music site once again, this time debuting a new music video from their latest album Marlone. If anything, “In People’s Homes” is an outlier in terms of what can be expected from the band, but a diversion that is as enjoyable a listen as […]
- Copycat Interview ()
When did you start making mashups? Copycat: Depends on what you categorize as a mashup. I’ve been laying tracks on top of each other since the ’80s. But as regards the modern equivalent, doing it on a computer, using parts of different tracks to create entirely new ones, I’d say around 2002/2003. But I didn’t […]
- Mashups of the Week: GZA & Johnny Cash ()
Technically this probably lands closer to a remix than a mashup, but considering the source it’s not a stretch to include it in this week’s post. The Hood Internet was recently asked by Wu-Tang’s GZA to put a spin on Mando Diao’s “Dance With Somebody” in order to appropriate the track for some fresh lyrics […]
- Stream Bon Iver’s final concert (ever?) ()
Bon Iver’s October 11 performance at the Riverside Theater in Milwaukee may very well be the band’s last… well, at least “until next year, or something.” Justin Vernon, whose heart has continually beat with For Emma, Forever Ago running through his veins since its independent release in 2007, is putting the band on an indefinite hiatus as […]
- Jeremy Messersmith to perform live at lunchtime ()
“I figured that those of you trapped in cubicles eating your paper bag lunches may need a bit of cheering up on a cloudy day like today” writes Jeremy Messersmith on his blog today. But even if you’re not in need of some emotional enhancement it’ll likely be worth your time to tune into Messersmith’s online […]
- Illuminoids Interview ()
When did you start making mashups? Jells Mayhem: Back in 2006, after listening to some CDs that where floating around, and we would always listen to DJ Paul V.’s Mashup of the Day that used to air on Indie 103.1. And we became so fascinated with the whole concept. And then seeing that there was […]
- dj BC Interview ()
When did you start making mashups? dj BC: In about 2004, after hearing some made by other folks. But before that I was making them for a few years outside the ‘computer realm’ and was thinking of them more as hip-hop remixes. But Sony Acid opened up a whole new world for me. Was there […]
- Mashups of the Week: The Beastles return & “Glee” ()
After a few weeks of crapping it up, lobsterdust nailed a remarkable mix this week, utilizing a track from Queens of the Stone Age layered within some fresh Air. Though the song isn’t built on material from Air’s most recent release, Love 2 (which is highly recommended, by the way), it retains the French duo’s leisurely approach to […]
- Ben Frost Interview ()
To call Ben Frost unique would be an understatement. The Australian-born experimental composer now resides in Iceland and is on the brink of releasing By the Throat, his second release on the Bedroom Community label. The album is a chilling listen that scans Frost’s environment, picking up on the majesty of nature, and the welcoming […]
- Dj Doc Rok Interview ()
When did you start making mashups? Dj Doc Rok: I first started doing remixes of songs in late 2006, the first one was Mims “This Is Why I’m Hot.” It was a vehicle to promote my production skills, I didn’t mix it with another famous song I just put my own beat underneath it instead. […]
- Mashups of the Week: Obama & Lady GaGa ()
The Ting Tings have been completely played out this year, and in the process “That’s Not My Name” has unfortunately undergone the same treatment that Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy” did a few years back. It’s still a solid song, but it’s been repeated to a point of exhaustion; no place else is this more truth than […]
- Total Babe “Heavewave EP” Review ()
Following a brief musical introduction Clara Salyer opens Total Babe’s six song EP with the welcomed sound of her voice. Her gently slurred verses are slightly elevated over the guitar, drums and organ throughout the song, allowing her distinct hum to immediately make an impact. And even though I can’t really tell you exactly what […]
- Moby at Fine Line Music Cafe (Minneapolis, MN) ()
Video of Moby‘s October 1, 2009 show at the Fine Line Music Cafe in Minneapolis, MN features performances of “Shot in the Back of the Head,” “Mistake,” Lou Reed’s “Walk on the Wild Side,” “Extreme Ways,” “Honey,” Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs,” and “Feeling So Real.” [This post was first published by Culture Bully.]
- James McMurtry “We Can’t Make It Here” ()
I’m a fairly laid back person. I throw shitfits every now and then like most people do, but like most people, the vast majority of my pissiness is superficial and is forgotten almost immediately. It takes a lot to honestly get me riled up, so when I do become angry — honestly angry — it’s […]
- AFI Critics’ Pick ()
What a difference a decade can make. A Fire Inside initially formed in 1991, but disbanded shortly thereafter as core members enrolled in separate colleges. Over the next few years the band would reunite and record their first two full-length albums, but by 1998—which saw the release of both A Fire Inside EP and Black Sails in the Sunset—the original lineup […]
- Britney Spears releases new single “3,” officially stops trying ()
Britney’s Manager: OK, what we’d like to do is keep the positive synergy between Britney’s new and old fans in high gear and make sure that we keep the energy up from her massively successful Circus tour by releasing a greatest hits album; covering her entire career, peaks and trophs—everything! Jamie Spears: Love it, y’all! […]
- Fuck Knights Interview ()
Last December Minneapolis’ Fuck Knights released its first album FuKn Live! Vol. 1, a compilation of songs recorded live from a variety of the band’s performances. Now following it up with a second release, Vol. 2 contains 12 tracks recorded throughout the Midwest from January to May of this year. The album will officially drop […]
- dj Erb Interview ()
When did you start making mashups? dj erb: In keeping with what I’ve actually heard from quite a few DJs and producers, it probably all started with a dual tape deck. I always loved Pantera and metal music where there’d be just a groove to it and there would usually be a breakdown part in […]
- Mally Interview ()
The past decade has seen one of the nation’s strongest hip hop scenes develop in the Twin Cities, with acts such as Atmosphere, Brother Ali, P.O.S. and the Doomtree crew, Eyedea & Abilities, I Self Divine, and Toki Wright gaining national and international acclaim. But for every Slug there are a dozen MCs below the […]
- Mashups of the Week: Reba McEntire & Brother Ali ()
With all the love Brother Ali has been receiving for his newly released album Us, it’s no wonder that the MC has received a little love from the mashup world as well. DJ STV SLV of Chicago’s Hood Internet recently dropped a track that combines Ali with the brilliance that is Flying Lotus. DJ STV […]
- G3RSt Interview ()
When did you start making mashups? G3RSt: When I was younger, I used to make a lot of tunes and remixes using tracker software on the PC (ScreamTracker, ImpulseTracker, that kind of stuff). Most of it was very experimental and not very good. Ha! After a few years, my interest in that waned, so I […]
- Mashups of the Week: Girl Talk & Tron ()
This is the first clip (above) from RiP: A Remix Manafesto, one of the most important documentaries dealing with the remix generation and copyright laws in recent years (if not thee most important). It’s hard to tell someone that a mashup of Slayer and Madonna is a piece of art, but the idea behind separating sourced […]
- Pearl Jam “Backspacer” Review ()
At that particular time in my life I had heard of Pearl Jam. I was familiar with whatever radio-friendly singles they had in rotation on the local classic rock radio station, and was a casual fan. But my first real introduction to the band came during the 1996 Grammy Awards. At the time I was […]