Exciting news from Nobunny <3s u:
“Nobunny/Cramps DVD is SOLD OUT! Stay tuned for blood, bunnies,beer, and things getting weird in the NOBUNNY movie! Out Easter 2011!”
All posts by G. Gordon Gritty
Black Lips – “Christmas In Baghdad”
Christmas in Baghdad, it can be such a drag
Don’t wanna come home in a body bag
No candles, no cheer, just all violence here
Well I hope I can see you this year
Not a reindeer in sight; this ain’t no holy night
They’re putting up a hell of a fight
Guess there’s nothing we can do about it
Learn jingle bells in arabic
Hope I can make it home alive
‘Cause I’m sure missing Christmas time
Not a chance of snow
Pretty sure my heart beat will go
But please don’t let that bullet go
Face down in the sand
Fighting strangers in a foreign land
Well I hope that you can understand
CD Review: The Liminanas [2010]
Band: The Liminanas
Release: 2010
Label: Trouble In Mind
1. “Darkside” – B-
2. “Down Underground” – B
3. “Je ne suis pas tres drogue – B-
4. “Funeral Baby” – A-
5. “Chocolate in my Milk” – B
6. “Tigre du Bengale” – C+
7. “Mountain” – B-
8. “Je suis une go-go girl” – A-
9. “Berceuse pour Clive” – B
10. “Tears” – B-
11. “Tigre du Bengale” – B-
12. “Got Nothing to Say” – A
Comments: To quote insound.com’s description of this album: “This LP has a very cinematic feel.” As a result, a lot of the songs feel pretty orchestrated and calculated. Don’t let some of the English titles fool you — this is mainly a French affair. Like I’ve mentioned in previous posts, my knowledge of French is very minimal. I don’t know what they are talking about, but that’s okay…I’ve never been all that good at/interested in interpreting lyrics anyway. “Funeral Baby” is the band’s first attempt at no frills garage-pop and the result is an awesome song. It reminds me of Davila 666, but from the South of France. As far as the rest of the record is concerned, it’s an all-together different approach to music making. There are some semi-instrumental tracks and other consistently weird rockers. Album closer “Got Nothing to Say” is a favorite from this. “Tu m’a dit que tu t’es “okay” — “You told me that you are okay” — is what I think is repeated, BUT this does not matter!
Grade: B (84)
Best Coast/Wavves – “Something For You”
*KLYAM isn’t endorsing Target!!!***
P.S. A joyful Thanksgiving is wished to all KLYAM readers.
Glen’s Best of 2010: Concerts
It looks like another year in concerts has concluded for me. I got to see 22 shows (25 in 2009) at quite a few different venues and three happened to have taken place in New York City (reppin’ Queens). While I’m not so sure 2010 can top 2009 in terms of overall favorite shows, I think it’s safe to say I had a great time concert-going. Looking back, I’m going to rate shows based on three factors: opening bands, headlining band, and experience. A great experience for me is a combination of a great venue, a great crowd, and second-by-second fun. I tend to be pretty analytical about this kind of stuff, so for math people the weighting is as follows: 20% opening bands, 20% experience, and 60% headlining band. Also, I’m usually stricter when it comes to these end of the year tallies.
A
1. Black Lips – Temptress, NYC [95]
2. No Age – Middle East Downstairs [95]
A-
3. Black Lips – Middle East Downstairs [93]
4. King Khan & The Shrines – Royale [92]
5. Wavves – Great Scott [90]
6. Nobunny – PA’s Lounge [90]
B+
7. The Walkmen – Royale [89]
8. Editors – House of Blues [89]
9. Spoon – House of Blues [87]
B
10. Paul Weller – Apollo Theater, NYC [86]
11. Girls – Paradise Rock Club [86]
12. Beach House – Paradise Rock Club [86]
13. Harlem – Great Scott [85]
14. Deerhunter (AUG) – Royale [85]
15. Those Darlins – TT The Bears [84]
16. The Growlers – TT The Bears [84]
B-
17. Deerhunter (OCT) – Royale – [83]
18. Uninhabitable Mansions – Middle East Upstairs [82]
19. Mission of Burma – Paradise Rock Club [81]
C+
20. Vivian Girls – Great Scott [79]
21. Black Lips – The Shank, NYC [78]
22. Kurt Vile – Harper’s Ferry [77]
Hunx & His Punx – “Dream On”
From the Scion A/V series:
Music Video: “Invisible Girl” – KK & BBQ Show
From the maker of the video for “Waddlin Around,” and “Fish Fight” comes the video for “Invisible Girl,” an excellent track off of The King Khan and BBQ Show’s 2009 LP of the same name.
Watch: http://vimeo.com/16977379
Exclusive Rolling Stone BL Studio Vid!
Take a look inside the MetroSonic Recording Studios in Brooklyn, New York where the Black Lips recently finished recording with Mark Ronson. Inside you’ll see Cole’s infamous human skull and a boat load of analog equipment. For those confused about the Lips pairing with Ronson, Ronson says it’s not like he came in and said “hey, I’m going to clean up the Black Lips!” From the video, it looks like there’s a new song with what I like to call the “Dirty Hands” arrangement — a D-A-G chord progression and Cole’s vocals. The last song that is played sounds absolutely fantastic, an ode to the production techniques of Brit Invasion rock and roll.
Check it out: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/68404/237078
Garage Explosion – Excellent New Documentary!
Watching this documentary, you might feel like you are reading this website. There are shots of living and deceased (literally/not literally) KLYAM regulars like Black Lips, Jay Reatard, King Khan & BBQ Show as well as shots and interviews with other great musicians and performers like Ty Segall, Thee Oh Sees, Davila 666, The Dirtbombs, The Magic Kids, Hunx and His Punx and Box Elders. What is garage rock? For Jay Reatard, it was about grossing people out. For Joe Bradley, “it’s about keeping it simple, stupid. That’s what we’re [Black Lips] are trying to do. It’s about fun and entertainment.”
VICE goes around interviewing some of the most notable and downright prolific names in garagerock. Part 1 examines the scenes in Memphis and Detroit.
Part 1: http://www.vbs.tv/watch/vbs-music-specials/garage-explosion-part-1-of-3
Part 2: http://www.vbs.tv/watch/vbs-music-specials/garage-explosion-part-2-of-3
CD Review: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy [2010]
Rapper: Kanye West
Release: 11/2010
Label: Roc-A-Fella
1. “Dark Fantasy” – A+
2. “Gorgeous” – A
3. “Power” – A+
4. + 5. “All Of The Lights (Interlude)/All Of The Lights” – A-
6. “Monster” – A-
7. “So Appalled” – A
8. “Devil In A New Dress” – A
9. “Runaway” – A-
10. “Hell of a Life” – B+
11. “Blame Game” – B+
12. “Lost in the World” – B
13. “Who Will Survive in America” – B-
Comments: My history with listening to Kanye West is brief and to the point. I bought The College Dropout in the summer of 2004. I really loved that album. It’s still pretty great. After that, I fell out of touch with West, not necessarily because he was gaining fame or anything (no such ‘indie’ mindset for a thirteen year old), but because…well, I don’t know. This album, along with man himself, has received a lot more hype in the past few months than I can ever recall before. Initial reviews have near universally dubbed this one of the best pop albums of all time. “Dark Fantasy” certainly gives these claims some validity. The beat. The lyrics. The chorus of “Can we get much higher?” is something that is overwhelmingly more luscious and “bigger” than most of the shit that gets played on Top 40 radio today. I think “Power” is one of the best songs of the year. I must say this was looking like something special by the end of “Power,” but ultimately fails to keep up that pace. He didn’t fail to jot down his thoughts on paper and get a bunch of great guests to spot on this record. As an all-encompassing work of art, this kind of album will be hard to surpass. To put it simply, it doesn’t (through-and-through because as I’ve mentioned there are some ace tracks) sound as great as it looks on Wikipedia. Realistically a top 30 album of the year. Top 10 or top 5? Definitely not.
Grade: A- (90)
Kids Like You & Me (KLYAM) 