indie-lievable!!!

i sort of suck because i am totally piggybacking on this article. But I suppose I am here to lend some thoughts rather than just report the news.

So just to summarize the article before going ahead with my thoughts. This week the Black Keys, LCD Soundsystem, Band of Horses, and Nas/Damien Marley, Janelle Monae, and The national all made billboard's top 20 albums this week.

Earlier in the year Vampire weekend made history by being the first independent label artist to strike #1. And if it weren't for those pesky bastards in Glee or the fact that Keith Richards needs more money for ... well speculation on that should be saved for another time but i'm putting my money on black market fetuses ...

So yeah, indie is the new mainstream. It makes a lot of sense. I actually think in terms of the music industry it's an interesting look at how things like corporate radio and music stores and basically the entire major label industry is no longer the model that works. Well at least not in rock music.

I guess my biggest problem with most of the analysis out there on this point always seems to allude that there's is some mysterious "other" way that people are getting their information. When in reality it's pretty easy to figure it out. I like math so lets build the equation for how to make money these days.

x = people in America root for the underdog. example a: the red sox, example b: apple. while as neither of these "brands" are really underdogs (check the financial records) they have positioned themselves against their industry titans in such a way that makes them look and feel like the underdog.

y = out is in. being "cool" means that you're into shit that other people are not. or being part of a scene that is somehow underground.

z = all people want is to do whatever they feel like in any given moment and not have to answer to anyone for it. specifically one surmises a musician just wants to write music. when they're not in the mood to write music they want to watch tv. or perhaps they don't even like music that much but the fact remains they do not want to deliver pizza or clean urinals or tend bar or work in the mall food court or whatever the fuck people who are artistically inclined do to cover rent.

operand= money. money drives z. don't take this as some personal tirade against money. i'd much rather work in the financial paradigm rather than the fucking bartering system. as a small, middle class, average intelligence, creativity deprived individual i would essentially be royal effed without money.

to that end. to get money you need to get it from people who already have it. and the people that have it can afford internet. fucking everything is related to the internet.

which leads to function

function = internet. people with money are ALL using the internet. the internet provides endless ways for people to use their money. the word "internet" will soon be too small of a word to describe what is really going on. it's easy to predict in the future everything EVERYTHING will be run through the electronic communication pipelines known as the internet.

the internet is now what drives all trends. and the only reason things like corporate radio and movie theaters and other hard brick and mortar establishments still exist is because people with WAY fucking more money than you and I have invested their entire fortunes in the success of something that at one point seemed impossible to not need, at least for entertainment value.

it's almost like a battle of billions of people with $100's of dollars vs. 100's of people with billions of $'s. Not to mention the whole idea that without realizing it the more people fund and support electronic ways of dealing with everyday life are essentially taking money away from the people that currently have to service the brick and mortar versions ... and possibly taking their own jobs away. a simple, possibly stupid, but effective analogy would be the movie theatre employee who only watches movies with their netflix online account ... they're basically ending the need for their own job. A slightly less direct idea would be movie-philes who demand the crisp picture offered by digital projectors thereby destroying the film / projection industries.

but enough about movies. the point is that the internet has bred indie music into the 'new mainstream' by providing the allusion that people are making a less popular choice when they listen or support an indie label musician, which is actually the 'cool' thing to do and thereby has now become the more popular choice.



so how does one get to z through f using x and y?

zf(x * y) ... or something ... effed if i know...

i could probably talk about the economics of 'cool' forever. i just thought it was almost a milestone in indie label popularity when i saw that article. figured i'd lament some, because ... well this is my blog and that's kind of what i do.

ok cornell, now it's on

basically band of horses is my favorite band of the current "era" of my music preferences ... soundgarden was my favorite band of a much earlier era ... imagine why i think video is 'bout as epic as it gets for me:



so now it's cornell's turn to retort, perhaps with the national's matt beringer later this summer at lolla ... oh god, how effing cool would that be?!!

shanghai cop affiliation

video for the first single by the cooky canucks sounds like they haven't lost a step. still quite capable of making fun singalong pop ..pop... they're playing buffalo at town ballroom in late July ... see you there!!!


Tokyo Police Club - Breakneck Speed

TOKYO POLICE CLUB | MySpace Music Videos

where's soof

so i was totally going to do this whole mildly humorous "you have 4 minutes and 22 seconds. ready .... go" thing ... but the preview frame of the vid totally took the fun out of that ... sunzabitches.

My first (attempted) article

Attention shoegazers! hey, if you took a moment to look up from the laces then consider yourself in luck! Why? Well, because fuzz pop all stars the pains of being pure at heart are coming to town on Saturday, June 5th.

The brooklyn based power poppers bring their brand of lovelorn haze infused indie crunch to the Tralf for an 8pm show ($15). Having already run the gauntlet of touring behind their self titled LP and an EP released last September the hipsters extraordinaire come riding in on a wave of indie cred and a new 7" hope to show Buffalo what all the fuss is about. Taking a page from the Smiths and NYC's own Sonic Youth the Pains combine a syrupy mix of overdriven guitar pop, dreamy synths, and lyrics about what else, the heart. Lace up your favorite gazing loafers and practice your best late 80's dance moves cause if their show last spring in Rochester was any indication these guys know how to entertain.

Along for the ride are West Palm, Fla. based and metaphorically appropriate Surfer Blood. But don't let the name scare you, these indie pop knuckleheads are gaining notice after impressive shows at CMJ '09, and SXSW in March. They specialize in singing about what they know girls, music, and Obama. But do it with gusto that raises their brand of simplistic pop into grandiose slacker anthems. Lucky for us they must have had a good time in Buffalo when they played in April cause they're back for another go. And yes, they play catholic pagans, no need to shout it at them throughout the set you goon ... karaoke alert: you may want to brush up on your old school weezer lyrics prior to the show!

And for all you fellow synth lovers out there make sure you catch the opening and up and coming Hooray for Earth. Their light hearted swimmy synths and jubilent croons should provide a swell introduction to a night of good times. They're touring to promote their new EP titled Momo which is released on June 1st under the Dovecote Records label.

Also is it just me or would "Hooray! Surfer Pains!" make an excellent band name? That one is on me, free of charge.

Check the primer videos below and start practicing your dance moves now!!

Pains of Being Pure at Heart: Young Adult Friction


via: p4k

Surfer Blood: Swim



via: youtube.com

Hooray For Earth: Surrounded by Your Friends

"Surrounded By Your Friends" by Hooray For Earth from Johnny Woods on Vimeo.

Infinite Arms - Review

Last week I posted some initial thoughts on a few albums that I have been keeping in the regular rotation. One of them was the (personally) highly anticipated release by Band of Horses "Infinite Arms". My initial take was an unsurprisingly disappointed look at the band's new direction.

As a long time fan of the band a short but necessary historical look at the band's discography will provide context to my defense of my initial reaction, as well as support my second take. The initial make up of the band consisted of lead man Ben Bridwell's delicate lyrical crooning and Mat Brooke's powerful guitar pop. "Everything all the time" is filled with both these guys trying to one up the other's grandiose.

But when the two visionaries didn't see eye to eye Bridwell packed up his banjo, the band name, and headed back home to South Carolina. There is where Cease to Begin was born, and it's easy to tell with tracks that harken small town America, and simple southern lifestyle. At the time of it's release my infatuation with the epic ballads of EatT craved more of the same. Cease to Begin did not feed this craving well, which as is usually the case ... hunger makes people cranky. Eventually though, the softer craftsmanship on CtB began to shine through until a more thorough and full appreciation of the album led to a spot on the mantle next to EatT.

It's not hard to figure where I'm going with this.

So after a full week of continuing to give Infinite Arms a chance the album has finally began cracking the shell. Where as one can see EatT as a duet, and CtB as a solo, Infiinite Arms provides a new chapter in the band by truly being a BAND album. Unlike previous albums this one is filled with songs where multiple instruments stand out. Keyboard/piano, steel guitar, banjo, and even a synth or two have taken a turn being featured here. And while it's hard to deny the simple brilliance of songs like "For Annabelle" and "Blue Beard" which disassemble the notion that Bridwell has fallen off (at all), it's still a necessary and enjoyable evolution into songs like "Compliments" and "Laredo".

My initial distaste was being unfamiliar with the band's new fuller sound, and almost an homage to the simplicity of the previous efforts. However a band must grow or else they'll get bored and dissolve. The fact that the album turned out like this should have been easy to guess. As last year's Bonnaroo set showed Bridwell is having a damn good time jamming with his friends as his stage show featured upwards of 7 members all rocking their asses off for the crowd.

And that's what this album is. Bridwell earned his place, showed the world his talent, and now just wants to have fun making music with his friends. While not all the songs on Infinite Arms are going to cause lighters to be thrust into the dark night air, they might however cause one to throw their arm over the shoulder of the one they're with perhaps signaling the idea to be passed along ... and along ... and along into infinite arms.

new release thoughts

Broken Social Scene - forgiveness rock record: if by chance you end up at a backyard barbecue, you look around and all you see are specialty beers, kids wearing plaid, mustaches, and jean shorts, and in the background you hear fuzz and trumpets and crooning .... you're probably at a party with indie kids who are rocking this record. It just sounds like that kind of an album. BSS is back on the ambient indie noise pop train. It's no 'You forgot it in people' but the hipsters will love it.

Band Of Horses - Infinite Arms: As much as I tried and tried to convince myself that BoH could do no wrong, the best I could muster is that while there may not be any bad songs on their new album, there aren't really any great ones either. A few tracks stand out, but fail to meet the bravado and compassionate pieces littered throughout the previous efforts. Bridwell's squeeky sheen basically carries what seems like a band trying to be a band instead of Bridwell solo + a backing band. It's probably too early to tell whether this is growing pains, or the end of what was once indie brilliance (the emo in me declares Infinite Harm). Did i hear syths on one of the tracks ? Wha?? Oh hell no. Keep your fingers crossed they keep a good mix of the old stuff in their live sets. And expect to see them sucking up commercial air time with the floaters found within.

MGMT - Congratulations: When MGMT first hit the scene I was not really impressed. Catchy dance pop wasn't my thing. I had the album and noticed that the tracks that weren't receiving bubble gum fame were completely different and comparatively for the genre downright awful. What I interpreted as indie lamestars attempting to no-talent assclown themselves to fortune and fame, was actually indie credstars just trying to a foot up in that ... needless to say missions accomplishsed. What Congratulations then turns out to be is an album made post-foot out your ass ... it's like they said ... 'yeah, we can make shitty pop, but check out the indie psych-rave we really dig playing'. I haven't gotten too deep into this one, especially since it at first felt like a cannonball into the Pacific on first listen ... but i can tell you it's at least an interesting listen. Just set your expectations down at the door.