Japan Relief Logo

Support the Japan earthquake and Pacific tsunami relief efforts! Please feel free to use this logo I've designed.

Life Imitates Art, Again

I love this new Volkswagen L1 concept vehicle and this article makes an interesting comparison.

Dream Rock Band

With the release of The Beatles Rock Band, I was wishing that they would release something a little more modern and part of our times. So, here's my dream Rock Band release.

ROCK BAND NIPPON

Keiji Heino

Acid Mothers Temple

Boredoms

100 IN CONCERT

Inspired by a friend. Here are 100 bands/musicians I've seen in concert (in no order):

01. P J Harvey*
02. Lou Reed*
03. Patti Smith*
04. John Parish*
05. Einstürzende Neubauten*
06. Swans*
07. Nirvana*
08. Sonic Youth*
09. Jane's Addiction*
10. Pixies*
11. Redd Kross*
12. The Angels of Light*
13. A Silver Mt. Zion*
14. Godspeed You Black Emperor!
15. lowercase*
16. Imaad Wasif with Two Part Beast*
17. Pan Sonic*
18. Ryoji Ikeda*
19. Mudhoney*
20. Sugarcubes
21. Red Hot Chili Peppers*
22. Porno for Pyros
23. Giant Sand*
24. Scout Niblett*
25. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds*
26. Dirty Three*
27. Shellac*
28. Low*
29. Cat Power*
30. The Cure*
31. Eels
32. John Cale
33. Siouxsie & the Banshees*
34. The Creatures*
35. Skinny Puppy*
36. Pigface
37. Pentagram
38. Mötley Crüe*
39. SunnO)))*
40. Earth
41. Xymox
42. Depeche Mode*
43. O.M.D.
44. Smashing Pumpkins*
45. Love & Rockets
46. Lush
47. Grandaddy*
48. Bad Religion
49. Smog*
50. Radiohead
51. Murcof
52. Michael Gira*
53. Phil Niblock
54. Blixa Bargeld
55. Kiss
56. W.A.S.P.
57. The Buck Pets
58. Apparat
59. Lusine
60. Static Static*
61. Roger O'Donnell
62. Jim O'Rourke
63. The Dead Texan
64. Thomas Fehlemann*
65. Björk
66. Devendra Banhart
67. Mouse on Mars*
68. John Parish & Polly Jean Harvey*
69. Howe Gelb*
70. Hazel Winter
71. alaska!*
72. Yeah Yeah Yeahs!
73. Laika
74. Nina Hagen*
75. Múm*
76. Morrissey
77. Sigur Rós
78. The The
79. Do Make Say Think*
80. Rachels
81. Adult.
82. Animal Collective
83. Book of Love
84. Diamanda Galas
85. Tim Hecker
86. Tracy Chapman
87. Tricky*
88. Dinosaur Jr.
89. The Wonderstuff
90. Nitzer Ebb*
91. John Zorn
92. Kim Hiorthøy
93. T. Raumschmiere
94. The Legendary Pink Dots*
95. Oranj Symphonette*
96. Sebadoh
97. Sex Gang Children*
98. Marianne Faithfull
99. New Model Army
100. OOIOO

*means I've seen them more than once

30 YEARS!

I just came across this video and I can't believe it was done 30 years ago!

I feel it's my obligation to share it with people who have not seen it.

Enjoy!

DIScourse

I'm putting this up a little late, but here's some exciting news, for me anyway.

In March, I was asked by John Parish to come up with a playlist for the Guardian UK and as of April 1 the (edited) list was published.

Guardian Playlist

Here's the complete list:

1. Scout Niblett - "Let Thine Heart Be Warned" This Fool Can Die Now

Since I was asked to create this playlist for the British based Guardian, I
wanted to start off my set with something that joins England with my city. This
is my favorite track from Bristish musician and Portland transplant, Scout
Niblett's latest LP, "This Fool Can Die Now".  This is a perfect Scout Niblett
track covering her soft and hard vocal styles with her distinctive guitar
playing and great drum beat.

2. Imaad Wasif with Two Part Beast - "Seventh Sign" Strange Hexes

Imaad Wasif is an under-appreciated guitarist and songwriter and it was hard to
chose what song from this album to put on this but I ended up choosing "Seventh
Sign" because I feel it showcases Imaads range as a musician.  This album also
is the debut for Two Part Beast, consisting of Bobb Bruno on bass and Adam
Garcia on drums, giving a great structure for Imaad to build upon.

3. Hazel Winter - "Don't Send Me Back to the Dark Place" Situation Normal Then

The third and most recent release for Bristol based musician, Hazel Winter,
"Situation Normal Then" is a nice progression from Hazel's previous albums.
What I really enjoy about this track is that retains the familiar sound of her
voice and guitar while adding some interesting instrumentation that's not often
heard in this type of music.

4. Holy Sons - "Evil Falls" Decline of the West

Another track from a Portland based musician.  This one from the prolific song
writer Emil Amos under his Holy Sons solo project.  Holy Sons is a new band for
me but I've been listening to this album a lot as of late.  Emil has a great
voice and I love how this song swells up, breaks and ends with a noise and
samples.

5. Food - "Last Supper" Last Supper

Food along with label-mate Supersilent, are responsible for getting me
interested in Jazz.  This is the final track from the 2004 album of the same
name released on the very dependable Norwegian label Rune Grammofon.  I chose
this track because I like the use of the traditional jazz instruments mixed
with electronics and vocals and I feel it's a good representation of the band.

6. Giya Kancheli - "Enimal" Exil

I found out about Georgian born, Giya Kancheli purely by chance but feel he is
a great example of a contemporary composer making meaningful works today.
"Enimal" is written around a Paul celan poem and features the perfect saprano
Maacha Deubner along with a five piece ensemble.  I love the simplicity and
sadness of this track as well as its use of silence.  Kancheli is currently
living and working in Antwerp, so now there's another reason besides diamonds,
chocolate and fashion to visit that great city.

7. Elegi - "Søvnens Kvelertak" Varde

Tommy Jansen (aka Elegi) is another new artist to me but his latest release,
"Varde" has been in constant rotation at home since its release in January.  It
tells the story of artic explores and their hardships as they trek across
barren lands.  I love how this track opens and closes creating resting places
for the listener during their travels.  I can't help but picture this being
used in a Guy Maddin film.

8. Murcof - "Cielo" Cosmos

Since 2002, Mexican born artist, Fernando Corona has consistantly been
releasing great electronic music and the 2007 release of "Cosmos" on the Leaf
label is probably my favorite to date.  The entire album is great from start to
finish (especially through headphones or a good stereo) but I really enjoy the
track progression and tempo of "Cielo" as well as Corona's use of string and
what seem to be vocal samples.  Get the triple vinyl edition while you can.

9. COH - "No Monsters No Rock (Part I - Mezzo Forte Passionato) Strings

I have been listening to Ivan Pavlov (aka COH) since the his 20' to 2000
release on Rasten Noton.　The full length album, "Strings" was released in 2007
and is broken into three parts that relate to the artists personal history and
experience with music.  The second part, "No Monsters No Rock" is based on
Pavlov's time playing in a Russian heavy metal band.  The main instrument is
his old Russian guitar but the composition has been filtered through the
musicians current interest in electronics.

10. Ester Brinkmann - "Mimesis" Totes Rennen

Thomas Brinkmann and his side project, Ester Brinkmann, are responsible for
opening the door to minimalist techno music for me.  "Totes Rennen" was the
first album to be released under the Ester Brinkmann monicker and dates from
1998, but I keep going back to it.  Brinkmann is a master at creating
infectuous rhythms and "Mimesis" is no exception.  Building on a study beat
Brinkmann starts to gradually layer in glitches, noise, and even samples from
philosophic recordings.

11. Einstuerzende Neubauten - "Grundstueck: GS 1" Grundstueck

This is my favorite recent recording by the pioneers of industrial music.
Recorded and released to only to supporters during Phase II of their online
music experiment, "Grundstueck" is proof that albums can benefit from the
absence of record executives.  This song is a great example of Blixa Bargeld's
writing and vocal style, while also showcasing the bands expertise in creating
new sounds using scrap metal, PVC piping, de-tuned instruments and various
other unusual sound sources. The song also feature a 100+ person choir largely
made up of the online supporters. It is the beginning of a bigger piece, but
stands up on its own.

12. Ryoji Ikeda - "Data.Reflex" Dataplex

Ryoji Ikeda is primarily responsible for getting me interested in minimalist
electronic music and multimedia installations.  It's hard to choose one track
from his multitude of releases for inclusion on this list since his music,
while all related, varies quite a bit.  However, I chose "Data.Reflex" from the
2005 "Dataplex" album since it is a good representation of how Ikeda approaches
his compositions.  Created purely from data the piece is like walking through a
supercomputer and being able to see the information being sent and received.
While some people may find Ikeda's music to be hard to listen to I always feel
like my mind is more clear after listening to his recordings.

13. Pan Sonic - "Arktinen/Arctic" Kesto (234.48:4)

This is my favorite track from Pan Sonic's lenghty discography and was the
final track on the disc two of Mika Vainio and Ilpo Väisänen's 2004 mammoth
four cd release, "Kesto (234.48:4)".  By mixing Ilpo Väisänen's rhythmic
minimalism with Vainio's darker aesthetic of glitches, noise and loops, this
track is a great example of how two artists with different styles can create
something wonderful.

14. Bohren & Der Club of Gore - "Unkerich" Dolores

Bohren & Der Club of Gore is another new band for me although they have
officially been around since 1986.  "Dolores", their most recent full length,
was released at the end of 2008 and I've been listening to it quite often.
With "Unkerich" this jazz band has created a wonderfully mysterious atmosphere.
I can picture Agent Cooper listening to this in the Black Lodge.

15. The Gentleman Losers - "Silver Mountain" The Gentleman Losers

Like Pan Sonic, The Gentleman Losers are also a Finnish duo, but that's where
the comparison stops.  This 2006 self titled release is the debut from the
brothers, Ville and Samu Kuukka, and is primarily based around acoutsic guitar,
organ and synthesizer.  I chose "Silver Mountain" because it feels very
hopeful, as if you're traveling down a road at sunset, headed towards a better
place, hopefully, a place with a follow-up album by these musicians.

NOW

Getting ready for adventures!!!