July 30th, 2010 by Kathleen Willcox
Born Round‘s Frank Bruni doesn’t beat ’round the bush when it comes to eating to the beat. The former fattie and opinionated New York Times food critic has quite strong opinions on the subject.*
In a memorable New York Diet column last week, Bruni went off on Jefferson Starship and the unseemly presence of their terrifying brand of prose poetry at the otherwise “beautiful” Torrisi restaurant in Little Italy. If you’re gonna play Jefferson Starship, you gotta pick your decade carefully, son.
July 29th, 2010 by Emily Youssef
Florida’s own Surfer Blood will partner up with Brooklyn’s The Drums for a U.S. tour that kicks off in September. Surfer Blood is touring in support of Astro Coast and The Drums are promoting their new self-titled record.
The shows are sandwiched between European tour stops for The Drums, while Surfer Blood is busy hitting festivals including OYA, Pukkelpop, Reading and Bumbershoot. Tickets are now available at the tour’s very own website, and each comes with a poster.
Also, if you dig either record, The Drums are to thank.
July 27th, 2010 by Kathleen Willcox
Ooh, snap! Musician, Top Chef and James Beard Award contender Graham Elliot is so not havin’ “Chicago” magazine’s tepid review of his creations for the newly food-centric Lollapalooza.
It’s unclear whether Elliot is playing the increasingly odious role of the over-sensitive artiste-chef or if he’s justifiably miffed. Elliot has described his cooking philosophy thusly: “Every dish is an extension of the cook who made it.”
In other words, you insult his food, you injure his inner soul. So how deadly were the barbs? “On the bland side;” “too rich;” “do you really want egg yolk dripping down your chin?;” “nah;” “flimsy.”
Yikes! Game on.
July 26th, 2010 by Emily Youssef
The best Lemonade is in Brooklyn. The San Franciscan transplants blend multi-faceted experimental arrangements, wafting vocals and tribal elements into meaty disco-influenced tracks intended to rock the dance floor.
Produced by Chris Coady (Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Architecture in Helsinki, Beach House), the trio released their eponymous debut album in 2008 via True Panther Sounds. Tropical cuts like “Big Weekend” and “Blissout” barely manage to contain their own percussion and build into big bursts of energy.
Their sophomore record, Pure Moods, followed earlier this year, mixing in more dub and soca influences, and found the band zeroing in on their sound.
July 26th, 2010 by Emily Youssef
Musicians are businesspeople–at least the smart ones. While up and coming bands once started their own labels and booked their own tours (full-time jobs alone), they’ve now expanded to crowdfunding album production (Kickstarter, Sellaband), selling merch online without the high distribution percentage cuts (Bandcamp) and much more as DIY is pushed into new territory.
Entrepreneurial successes this summer alone include Crooked Fingers, who raised over $12,000 to pay for recording and manufacturing a limited-edition vinyl 12” of cover songs–twice his goal.
Amanda Palmer realized her goal in mere minutes, selling $15,000 worth of merchandise in 90 seconds with the release of her ukulele-based Radiohead cover album. Not bad for someone who recently left a major label.
July 26th, 2010 by Emily Youssef
Best new downloads from the month of July (it’s the end of July already!) all in one place, guilt-free.
1. Menomena “TAOS”
From their new album, Mines, out July 27 (Barsuk), this is a pick-yourself-up-by-the-bootstraps kind of rock song with pop interludes and introspective lyrics. Bonus points for horns at the end.
Download track via Stereogum
2. Panda Bear “Slow Motion”
One of two songs leaked from Animal Collective member Panda Bear’s self-titled album, out this fall (Paw Tracks). There are better quality rips floating around, but here they are together.
Download tracks from Listen Before You Buy
3. Magnetic Man “I Need Air” featuring Angela Hunte
As dubstep continues to hit the mainstream, producers Skream, Artwork and Benga team up for a big pop album out this October (Columbia). Guest appearances include John Legend and Angela Hunte, who wrote the melody for this song and has worked with Alicia Keys and P. Diddy.
Download track via Gotta Dance Dirty
July 23rd, 2010 by Emily Youssef
The Dears will play a series of residencies in Montreal, Toronto and Brooklyn this fall to preview their new as-yet-unnamed album, out next year via Dangerbird Records.
Starting in September the band will be performing the new material live, and all profits made from merch sales at the shows will be donated to Montreal City Mission and War Child. Tickets for shows are on sale starting today.
The Dears also have a new lineup that features some new faces as well as returning players. Keyboardist/vocalist Natalia told us each album has a rotating cast of characters, and this one is no exception.
TOPICS: Eat to the Beat, Kathleen Willcox