Beastie Boys' Adam Yauch aka MCA, Dead At 47

Once again that bitch called cancer has sucked the life out of one of music's shiny diamonds.

Adam Yauch (stage persona MCA), co-founder and one of the mighty three Beastie Boys has died.

Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, class of 2012 (one of only three rap groups to receive that honor), Adam was unable to attend the ceremony (assumed due to ill health), but he and his band- yes, they are a band- are and will always be revered for the virtual conception of rap/rock, erasing the color line between the two genres, fresh beats, mashup skills, cutting edge grooves, and lyrical craftsmanship. And notable citizens of humanity for social consciousness.

In 2009 Yauch was diagnosed with cancer in his salivary gland and underwent treatment to beat the disease.

I can only imagine what my hometown of Brooklyn, NY and all of New York City is feeling today. Beastie Boys were an integral part of our music scene the moment "License To Ill" was unleashed in 1986 and they never stopped bringing the noise. That fusion of raucous rap and punkish rock out of three white kids from Crooklyn...that shit ruled my high school, made heads bang and some a little less fearful of big, bad, scary rap. Root down.

Thanks for that, MCA, Mike D, and Ad Rock.

No sleep til Brooklyn, Adam. Rest in peace.

....@dharma69

Feast Your Ears On UK's Fixers

If my goal was to pick a video to spark off your weekend and dose you with a sense of psychedelic possibilities, methinks I've succeeded with this little band from the UK: Oxford's Fixers and their video "Crystals".

Are you ready?

This five man outfit have just released their first U.S. EP, the five-track Pop Meat/Your Corruptor (yeah unless they're vegetarians, I have no idea what that means), and it's a fine gem showing off their obvious penchant for experimentation, hooks, and shiny danceable tunes. So now that your mind is all warped  and you can't stop singing "whoa oh oh!", feel free to make yourself even more comfortable with a couple of dandy downloads: "Crystal" and a well synthed-up, cool wave remix of the track "Iron Deer Dream".

Til next time....
@dharma69

Everest Give Up The "Rapture"

Whether or not they're named after a mighty mountain that insane people repeatedly attempt to climb, don't have a clue and maybe I'll ask them the next time that I see them, but Los Angeles rockers, Everest, do have the ability to craft some towering sounds that edge folk and alternative, country and rock, yet always just kind of bloom into soulful sounds of catharsis. Now cradled in the bosom of ATO Records (who seem to appreciate such sonics stylings), Everest are set to release their third full length album Ownerless on June 26th which guitarist Joel Graves describes as a "hopeful love letter slipped under the door".

How sweet.

In 2010 Russell Pollard (vox, guitar, drums), Jason Soda (guitar, keys), Joel Graves (guitar, keys), and Elijah Thomson (bass) gave us the warm rock of On Approach, here in 2012 it's the broad and adventurous canvas of Ownerless and you can sample some of that goodness right here with the track "Rapture". Fortunately, it's not the Harold Camping kind.

Dig it, download it.

New Track From Fiona Apple: "Every SIngle Night"

The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than The Driver Of The Screw, And Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do.

Yes, that's the title of Fiona Apple's long awaited (7 years, folks) follow-up to the deliciously extraordinary Extraordinary Machine. Look for it on June 19th.

Yes, that preciously WTF? title is the essence of her quirk, but it's part and parcel of why we love her. Just deal with it.

Lady Fiona made many a music lover's wet dream come true when she played SXSW this year with three of her new songs in tow and then announcing a subsequent tour. Sample the track "Every Single Night" to know that she's lost not a tremulous step in her musically cerebral game.

TRACKLIST:01 “Every Single Night”
02 “Daredevil”
03 “Valentine”
04 “Jonathan”
05 “Left Alone”
06 “Werewolf”
07 “Periphery”
08 “Regret”
09 “Anything We Want”
10 “Hot Knife”

Signed,
@dharma69

A Place To Bury Strangers

There's something to be said for being consistant and even more to be said for being consistently good.

In case you missed it, back in February A Place To Bury Strangers  released this little EP diamond Onwards To The Wall. If you're a fan of the Brooklyn NY trio (actually I think they're technically a foursome now due to adding a second drummer) and their dense-as-fuck take on the art of shoegaze-buzzsaw- noise rock, then click the link and strap on your headphones, but do dial up the volume gently. Only five tracks but there's no sacrifice made to their penchant for guitar freakouts and apocalyptic rush.

The Red Lapels

The Red Lapels. A fashion statement? Not so much. A four-man band from South East London composed of Richard Maddy (vox/guitar), Sean Spicer (drums), Harvey Lee (guitar), and Tom Barnes (bass), yes. The reason I'm talking about them is because there's a sound here that worships at the altar of aged and vintage while occupying space in indie rock-land. You can distinctly hear it in the guitar tones and particularly in Richard Maddy's voice, which is a darling instrument of soul unto itself. Tracks "Dead Eyed Girl", "Drowning Out" and "Magic" are gold.

Empires

Last but not least we have Chicago's own Empires, who come packing an explosive and all but guaranteed arena-worthy sound. Touches of anthemic ala U2 along with doses of blue collar and indie grit (think Gaslight Anthem) served up with Sean Van Vleet's bold and none too delicate and urgent vocals.  2008 saw them being all generous and releasing their 15-track album Howl for free. It's a mash up of varied styles and obvious that the band was still sorting out its sound but it's fine primer. "Spit The Dark" and "I Want Blood" are 180 degrees from "Believe" and "My Poor Love" but good stuff, nonetheless. Yes, just go ahead and download and enjoy the darned thing because come June they'll release their followup, Garage Hymns, which I expect to be a more cohesive work. Yeah, looking forward to that one.

Til next time....tng.

For Your Ears: UK's The Chevin

Scene of the Crime: the Satellite, January 23, 2012

There's something to be said for earnest ambition when it comes to creating dramatic rhythm and beauty  in song. It's the stuff of epic love songs and moments of exaltation that tend to lift the heart and hands Heavenward at stadiums. Enter the youth and talent of four UK gentlemen from Leeds known as the Chevin.

Somewhere between simplistic and heart-on-your-sleeve; that's the composite road that Coyle Girelli (vox/guitar), Mat Steel (guitar), Jon Langford (bass), and Mal Taylor (drums) travel with their indie rock movement towards being a band built on the power of emotions. As instruments go, Coyle's high tenor (damned near operatic) is a charismatic gift that emotes graceful soul in a way that some of today's successful contemporaries in similar genres could only dream of in their wettest rock star dreams (hi, Chris Martin, Brandon Flowers). A six track EP called Champion is their immediate offering to sample their musical charms; where "Songs For the Sun" is light, uncomplicated acoustic stripped fare, "Menwith Hill" climbs a loftier, more intricate height. As we speak they're currently here in Los Angeles recording their full length album. The EP's title track is the radio-ready gold and signature calling card/intro to the world as a band of rather well-realized potential and I was glad to have caught their very first show in LA on Monday night at the Satellite.




I have to say that there was a thrill in the watching and the listening as Girelli managed the stage casually, probably less than sure of what to expect from the Silverlake crowd on a Monday night residency show (typical in its wary judgment of new music); perhaps more singing to himself than to us. But song by song all four members of the Chevin pulled in honest appreciation from the audience; with the glossy guitar of Steel and formidable rhythm section of Taylor and Langford, just when you think that there's nothing else that can be wrung from a sound that a band like U2 has fused it's soul to (with unobtrusive synths thrown in for good measure), out comes a little band from a town in Leeds to freshly bleed into it. The possibilities are there; here's hoping they execute them.

Mars Volta Ready Release of Sixth Studio Album, "Noctourniquet"

It's been a while...since 2009's Octahedron to be exact, but the Mars Volta- masters of things prog/funk/experimental- have a new project to share: their sixth studio album that's due out on Warner Bros.

Noctourniquet. March 27th. Mark your calendars.

The 13-track album written by the usual suspects (Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and Cedric Bixler-Zavala) is said to explore "musical territories previously uncharted in the duo's 20 or so years of creating music together". Okay. Headphones at the ready.

Tracklist:

1. The Whip Hand
2. Aegis
3. Dyslexicon
4. Empty Vessels Make The Loudest Sound
5. The Malkin Jewel
6. Lapochka
7. In Absentia
8. Imago
9. Malochwalker
10. Trinkets Pale of Moon
11. Velamalady
12. Noctourniquet
13. Zed and Two Naughts

Yeah, now they're just making shit up.