Capitol Hill Block Party Part 2

Here it is, my eagerly awaited (completely ignored) report on the second day of the Capitol Hill Block Party.

July 25th
I got to the party around 2 o'clock and the madness started immediately. I started off by heading over to the Awesome Color concert happening at the Neumo's Stage.
The concert was Awesome as was promised and included many sweet ass break downs like this one:

Sometime in the middle of the show while I was hanging out enjoying the music, a middle aged man wearing sunglasses indoors came up to the front of the stage and started headbanging wildly. He was obviously skunk drunk and had a friend trying to keep him under control. While Awesome Color has a loud and fun show, they did not merit the sort of 'I'm a fucktard and listen to Korn' or 'I'm a juggalo' kind of headbanging that this man was doing.
During a short break, he asked the band what their name was and when told did not understand and expressed great dismay at them not being this other band he was excited about. I recall him later saying that he thought that this band was great and that oxycodone is a great name for a band. The bouncer laughed and told him to shutup.

I hung around there for Hotels. Hotels is nice new wave-esque kind of band. They were fairly good, but i wasn't hooked.


The next band I saw was surprisingly good. I'd never expected to listen to a band that admitted that it was emo and say, "wow, i could listen to this a few more times and not hate it." PELA is what emo was before MTV killed it and has carried on the old emo tradition. PELA has no whiny vocals and has a sound closer to a slow hardcore than to fallout boy. The main problem I had with them was that they all dressed like bros, but I'm willing to let it slide.

Next I saw the Maldives, a sort of bluegrass/folk/country rock band. Being a sucker for bluegrass and folk I loved the band. For some of their songs they had more of a Classic Southern Rock sound, another diggable type of music.

I don't know if I'll buy their album, but their concert was good.

Next was Truckasaurus, a band I'd been hearing about for a good while and was pretty excited to see. Every several months I become obsessed with 8 bit for less than a day, purists make me cringe because the sounds a gameboy make are grinding to listen to. I was one of those who welcomed standard electro into the 8 bit world and feel that the genre has improved because of it. If I were taking massive quantities of speed and/or coke, regular 8-bit would be pallatable, but seeing as I don't, it isn't. Check out Truckasaurus if you get the chance, their show packed Neumo's and had people dancing in the balcony. I hear that is hard to do. Also, I apologize for the camerawork, I was drunk.

Next was the Gossip. This band has roots where I live, down in Olympia, WA, and that would make most locals think that I would like them. Wrong. The Gossip was okay although maybe it was just the hundreds of people jammed together like sardines making my life a living hell.


The last band I saw was probably the main reason I decided to go to the concert in the first place. Sonic Youth is a great band that I've been into for a while now and I jumped at the chance to see them in concert.

They played mostly new music, but thats okay. If you've read my review of their new album you know how I feel about them. Even though they are an older band, they still play as well as if they were still in their twenties. You should've seen the mosh pit.

Capitol Hill Block Party Part 1

Last weekend, I went to a two day, 3 stage music festival. Capitol Hill Block Party, sponsored KEXP, KNDD (better known as The End), and The Stranger, attracts less well known bands than Bumbershoot (the other big Seattle music festival) and so I find them much more interesting. This is a 2 Part chronicling of my times at the festival:

Thursday, July 23rd:
Hitched a ride up from Olympia and got to parents house around midnight, went to sleep.

Friday, 24th:
Got to the Block Party just after 4 and tried to get my bearings. I had just walked all the way from downtown Seattle and was catching my breath. It was really hot out there. I could hear The Dutchess and The Duke playing from where I was sitting and was not impressed. I wandered looking for good music until 5:15 when I found and caught the tail end of Band of Skulls. I wish I had caught the full set; They ended up being really good.
I went to check out Bow + Arrow next, I wasn't digging it so I ended up heading to the first show I was really excited about for the day. Black Lips was playing at the mainstage and was sure to draw a crowd. I was determined to get up close, but got stuck pretty far back.



I bought their album after the show. Their punk vibe with some of the markers of their southern psychedelic rock sensibilities created a sound I wished I came up with myself.

Deerhunter followed immediately after Black Lips and played well. I’ve been excited about Deerhunter since I picked up their album about a year ago and was really jazzed when I saw that I could see them in concert. They were a full quarter of why I came to the Block Party.



Their vocal effects broke within the first 5 minutes of them playing and they still did a great set. They are definitely more of a recording-centric band, but their live show is still worth seeing. I recommend picking up their album, Microcastle. It has a nice flow from beginning to end.

After Deerhunter, I headed over to the Vera stage and found nice place to sit and recuperate for the final show I’d be seeing that night. Another quarter of the reason I went to the Block Party was Starfucker.



Besides the obvious attraction of the name, Starfucker is good local band from Seattle. They come through Olympia periodically. They play really mellow synthpop, I recommend giving them a listen sometime, it might change your life.

I went home to my parents house around 1 in the morning and got a good nights sleep. I would need it for the next day.

Bumbershoot 2009

Two posts in less than 24 hours, I'm on fire!

While looking through the lineup I discovered a few gems that you may have never heard of before, the first of which is Dead Confederate. They are playing Monday.

Dead Confederate - The Rat

Dead Confederate :: The Rat (Aquarium Drunkard Session) from Aquarium Drunkard on Vimeo.

Excited doesn't begin to explain how I feel about this.

Also on Monday is Akron/Family. Akron/Family is a band I've been familiar with for over a year and had not heard anything about recently. I suspect that the band is from Akron, Ohio and in fact a family. (in the Hippy commune and drug use sense) Weird psychadelic music with out there lyrics, screw it I'm in.

Metric is playing Monday as well, I am extremely excited to see them play. I'm a long time fan.

Mirah, a K Records (Olympia, WA Indie Record Label) artist, is also playing Monday. She's freaking great and appeals to all my Olympia sensibiliies.

Also, Truckasaurus:


Then of course there are the two headliners for that day, Franz Ferdinand and Modest Mouse. This my friends is why I am going to Bumbershoot on Monday if not for any other day.

Other Cool bands playing other days for you poor saps not going Monday:
Saturday: Elvis Perkins in Dearland, Natalie Portman's Shaved Head

Sunday: Holy Fuck, Helio Sequence

Anamanaguchi

If you enjoy 8 bit and/or animation at all you should check out this audio/visual project put together by Anamanaguchi for Dawn Metropolis, their new album. It's really cool although you might need to be concerned if you're prone to seizures.

The Eternal

Last week I went down to Caffe Vita in Downtown Olympia and picked up a copy of my favorite newspaper: the Stranger. It is a terrible newspaper full of ads and made up of mostly opinions. The redeeming factors are the writers' ability to write something funny or otherwise amusing and the funny/creepy personal ads in the back. In the front, I saw an ad for the new Sonic Youth album, a band that I didn't know was still making music. I got really excited and went off to get a copy.

Sonic Youth's "The Eternal" sounds like the other Sonic Youth albums,(not that that is a bad thing, I still like it) they know how to package noise pop and make it fun to listen to. The album kicks off with some classic 'the kids don't care' vocals and some crazy distortion and guitar noise with moments of lucidity. About half way through the album, the music gets much more tame and effect heavy with right on vocals just in time for 'Malibu Gas Station' the song I would choose as the single. The rest of the album is much less crazy. The album even ends on a downright mellow point, while still maintaining the noise drones one expects. If you like noise pop, The Eternal is a good album to get.

Best Thing on "Look At This Fucking Hipster"

This is the most ridiculous low budget music video I've ever seen. Thank you LATFH.


This shit is amazing. Have you ever seen two people act out a tiger attack with fake blood in adult onesies? Their makeup is great too. Open question, are these two furries?

Showcasing

I'm going to be showcasing almost all of my artistic skills in the next two weeks in various iterations. There'll be a concert I'm opening on Saturday May 30th with 'Pashaw!' It's my first concert and I'm really excited. I even made a flyer even though it is a small show for only a few people. I'm a nerd.
















I will also be having an installation at my class art show Wednesday June 3rd through the end of the week. Contact me if you want to come to the opening.

I Am So Inspired

that I needed to share this again.

A week or more ago I posted a website from my swarm (websites I check regularly) in this post. I had only visited it once or twice and it was already on its way to becoming another facebook for me.

The Sixty-one
For a music geek like me, this is a great website. They have a constantly growing music selection of mostly indie and self-produced music, but also of some more popular, borderline MTV bands like 'Band of Horses' and 'Ratatat.'
It also offers a sort of democratic selection of what is good and incentives for the really big geeks like me.
Are you ready for the kicker?

There is an RPG aspect to the rating process that allows you to level up based on having good taste in music and friends with good taste. There are music quests (they aren't mandatory) to complete, something I really enjoy about the site that creates something to do while bored. Its Pandora.fm: the game.

If you're interested in getting involved let me know and I'll send you an invite. We can be friends on the Sixtyone AND be judgemental together!

Holy Fuck!

Holy fuck, its Holy Fuck!

wooooo! synthpop sans coherent vocals!
Holy Fuck - Balloons
Holy Fuck - Lovely Alien
enjoy

Something to whet your appetites

So, I know you all are bawling your eyes out every night when you check your blog list. You say, "Oh man! The House of Brain is still out of commission! What will I do with myself?!?!" Seeing as I don't want to cause any more grief and because I'm tired of throwing away all the suicide notes, I came to campus today just to write to you.
How are you doing?
Are you loving life?
What's that smell?
I mean, you are about to wreck yourself. When is the last time you've checked yourself?
Do you like costume parties?
Why is the crotch cut out on this dolphin suit?
SO-tomorrow, I turn 21. I'm going to go to one of the local bars (the Brotherhood if you are so inclined to meet me there) that I've 'never been to before.'*wink wink nudge nudge* I am supposed to meet up with about 10 people there, most of them don't know each other. My roommate is also coming. This should be interesting.

Just discovered a new blog (I don't know how new it actually is) through my program website. It's interesting because each napkin is kind of like a frame in a comic book and that just happens to be what we're studying in class. I really like it and think i might copy it. I mean, I really love stealing people's ideas.

Also, what do you think? Would you buy this album if you judged it by its cover? (Like a book?) What kind of music would it be? Are you sexually attracted to it?

We. Are. Going. Musical.

I found out how to make this blog significantly more musical via 'Box.net.' I look forward to filling your ears with new and exciting music. As a first taste, here are some of the best track of 2008, according to me.

Gobbledigook - Sigur Rós

A Thing For Me - Metronomy

Lola Langusta - Cheveu

Vanished - Crystal Castles

Isabella of Castile - Starfucker

Also, I just got around to reading a small book my sister got me for Christmas.
I am now an expert at peeing in the city thanks to Ray Tempus' book "A 15 Point Guide to Peeing in the City." The book gives good directions on where and how to pee in the city. It even instructs the reader on specifics such as angle of feet and where to direct one's stream. It "has been pocket sized for your (the pee producer's) convenience." It really is a useful little book and would probably be a good conversation starter if laid out on a coffee table.


*Edit*
At Comics Night @ Danger Room I got out my copy of "A 15 Point Guide to Peeing in the City." Everyone thought it was really interesting and it started several small conversations. Small books: The new hip conversation starter of 2k9? Also, at first glance, people thought it gave directions for men exclusively, (with statements like, "They should make a ladies version!") but then I showed them the 3 city peeing strategies exclusively for women. This book is a hoot.

Top 10 Albums of 2008

As prompted by The Hype Machine, I've decided to drop my top ten albums of 2008. Who knows, maybe it'll educate the public or allow people to further understand me.(because I'm such a rockstar) Probably not.

1. ...Earth to the Dandy Warhols... - The Dandy Warhols
The Dandy Warhols are amazing. Nuff said.

2. My Bloody Underground - The Brian Jonestown Massacre
Unless you know me, you probably haven't heard of these guys before. They are one of the most important bands in of the last two decades. While this is not their best album, it is a good psychadelic shoegaze drugfest. Do you like the Icelandic language? It's in there. Really, give this a listen.

3. Skeletal Lamping - of Montreal
So continues the saga of Georgie Fruit. If you like synthesizers, you'll like Skeletal Lamping.

4. Modern Guilt - Beck
After Guero's mediocrity and The Information's less than stellar presentation, Modern Guilt comes back strong with a much more mellow and melodic mixture of futuristic synth and simple guitar tracks makes for a very attractive album.

5. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
The Seattle five piece has made a really big buzz in this last year and they really deserve it. When played for people who don't know better, they feel the music is dated. It has been a long while since a band with so many beautiful vocals and folk music stylings has made a splash. It is good to hear once again.

6. In The Future - Black Mountain
These prog rockers from canada have broken through to our radio airwaves in the last several months. Their catchy music and relevant lyrics make for some good prog rock, like Rush good.

7. Oracular Spectacular - MGMT
I like MGMT, like everyone else. Don't think you need an explanation for this one.

8. Glistening Pleasure - Natalie Portman's Shaved Head
LOL HIPSTERS MAKING FUN OF THEMSELVES! Also synth is fun.

9. LP3 - Ratatat
What kind of hipster doesn't like Ratatat?

10. In Rainbows - Radiohead
Came out in America January 1, 2K8. Radiohead is one of the biggest bands in all the world. They top the charts regularly and so they must be pretty important. In Rainbows is probably their worst work to date, but it is still better than other music in that vein.